of man catches 35kg shovelnose shark at bedok jetty

A group of fishing buddies caught a 35kg shovelnose shark at the Bedok Jetty. Photos of their catch were posted on STOMP.



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The guitarfish are a family of rays, having a body form intermediate between those of sharks and rays. The shovelnose guitarfish, Rhinobatos productus, is a ray that becomes sexually mature at an estimated seven to eight years. Males are between 90–100 cm, while females are around 99 cm at this time. The ray can live up to 11 years, and full grown sizes are around 120 cm for males, and females reach sizes of 137 cm. Shovelnose ray was first considered to be a shark because of its dorsal fin's shape.


From the Guide of Common Marine Fishes in Singapore, the White-spotted Guitarfish - Rhynchobatus djiddensis (Forsskål) Rhinidae - has:

Head triangular, black spot above pectoral fin base, white spots on anterior part of body. Solitary or in groups on sandy areas. To about 3 m. Pending the publication of a taxonomic revision, the present scientific name also covers several closely-related species. Often used for human consumption.

A 2.75m guitar shark was caught off Changi back in 2009 by bumboat operator Tan Seck Suah, as reported in a New Paper report.



In that report back in 2009, Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority said that guitarfish was not listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). It further added comments by Dr Tan Heok Hui (lecturer at the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research) and Jeffrey Kwik (fish biologist at the NUS Systematics and Ecology Lab) encouraging people to release such fish if they catch them.

Read more (Lone Shark In Singapore Water)