length is typically about one-quarter to one-third of the total length of the fish, but it varies depending on species, and sometimes with age and sex. The rostral teeth are not teeth in the traditional sense, but heavily modified dermal denticles. The rostral teeth grow in size throughout the life of the sawfish and a tooth is not replaced if it is lost. In Pristis sawfish the teeth are found along the entire length of the rostrum, but in adult Anoxypristis there are no teeth on the basal one-quarter of the rostrum (about one-sixth in juvenile Anoxypristis). The number of teeth varies depending on the species and can range from 14 to 37 on each side of the rostrum. It is common for a sawfish to have slightly different tooth counts on each side of its rostrum (difference typically does not surpass three). In some species, females on average have fewer teeth than males. Each tooth is peg-like in Pristis sawfish, and flattened and broadly triangular in Anoxypristis. A combination of features, including fins and rostrum, are typically used to separate the species, but it is possible to do it by the rostrum alone. Head, body and fins Sawfish have a strong shark-like body, a flat underside and a flat head. Pristis sawfish have a rough sandpaper-like skin texture because of the covering of dermal denticles, but in Anoxypristis the skin is largely smooth. The mouth and nostrils are placed on the underside of the head. There are about 88–128 small, blunt-edged teeth in the upper jaw of the mouth and about 84–176 in the lower jaw (not to be confused with the teeth on the saw). These are arranged in 10–12 rows on each jaw, and somewhat resemble a cobblestone road. They have small eyes and behind each is a spiracle, which is used to draw water past the gills. The gill slits, five on each side, are placed on the underside of the body near the base of the pectoral fins. The position of the gill openings separates them from the superficially similar, but generally much smaller (up to long) sawsharks, where the slits are placed on the side of the neck. Unlike sawfish, sawsharks also have a pair of long barbels on the rostrum ("saw"). Sawfish have two relatively high and distinct dorsal fins, wing-like pectoral and pelvic fins, and a tail with a distinct upper lobe