Smoothnose Wedgefish, Rhynchobatus laevis (Bloch & Schneider 1801)

Other Names: Giant Guitarfish, Sandshark, Shovelnose Shark

A Smoothnose Wedgefish, Rhynchobatus laevis, at Lizard Island, Queensland. Source: Simon S. Gingins / Lizard island Research Station. License: CC BY Attribution 3.0

Summary:

A very large wedgefish found off river mouths and in coastal bays in Australia.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2017, Rhynchobatus laevis in Fishes of Australia, accessed 17 Apr 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/2733

Smoothnose Wedgefish, Rhynchobatus laevis (Bloch & Schneider 1801)

More Info

Distribution	Recorded in Australia from Fremantle, Western Australia, around the north to Brunswick Heads, New South Wales. Inhabits coastal waters in shallow bays and off river mouths. Elsewhere, widespread in the Indo-west-central Pacific.
Feeding	Feeds mostly on benthic invertebrates.
Biology	The species is aplacental viviparous (ovoviparous).
Fisheries	Taken as by-catch in various demersal inshore fisheries throughout its range, and retained for its fins which fetch a high price. The flesh is also marketed in SE Asia. Due to their large and powerful fighting abilities, the species is also targeted by sports fishers.
Conservation	The Smoothnose Wedgefish is threatened by overfishing and habitat destruction in many parts of its range. The use of Turtle Exclusion Devices (TEDs) in some Australian trawl fisheries and various elasmobranch-finning prohibitions, has probably led to a reduction in captures - hence the Near Threatened classification in Australian waters (McAuley & Compagno 2003).
Similar Species	Confused with Rhynchobatus djiddensis throughout its range, and with R. australiae in Australian waters.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2017
Resources	Australian Faunal Directory

Smoothnose Wedgefish, Rhynchobatus laevis (Bloch & Schneider 1801)

References

Bonfil, R. 1994. Overview of world elasmobranch fisheries. FAO Fisheries Technical Paper 341. FAO, Rome.

Brewer, D.T., Rawlinson, N., Eayrs, S. & Burrige, C. 1998. An assessment of bycatch reduction devices in a tropical Australian prawn trawl fishery. Fish Research 36: 195-215.

Chen, H.K. (ed.) 1996. Shark Fisheries and the Trade in Sharks and Shark Products in Southeast Asia. TRAFFIC Southeast Asia Report, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia

Compagno, L.J.V. & Last, P.R. 1999. Rhinidae (=Rhynchobatidae) Wedgefishes pp. 1418-1422. In: Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific. Volume 3. Batoid fishes, chimaeras and bony fishes part 1 (Elopidae to Linophrynidae). FAO, Rome, 1466 pp.

Compagno, L.J.V. & Last, P.R. 2008. A new species of wedgefish, Rhynchobatus palpebratus sp. nov. (Rhynchobatoidei: Rhynchobatidae), from the Indo-West Pacific. In: P.R. Last, W.T. White & J.J. Pogonoski (eds). Descriptions of New Australian Chondrichthyans. CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research Paper 022, 358 pp.

Last, P.R., Séret, B. & Naylor, G.J.P. 2016. A new species of guitarfish, Rhinobatos borneensis sp. nov. with a redefinition of the family-level classification in the order Rhinopristiformes (Chondrichthyes: Batoidea). Zootaxa 4117(4): 451-475, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4117.4.1Abstract

Last, P.R. & Stevens, J.D. 1994. Sharks and Rays of Australia. Canberra : CSIRO Australia 513 pp. 84 pls. (as Rhynchobatus djiddensis, in part)

Last, P.R. & Stevens, J.D. 2009. Sharks and Rays of Australia. Collingwood : CSIRO Publishing Australia 2, 550 pp.

Last, P.R., White, W.T. & Séret, B. 2016. 9. Wedgefishes. Family Rhinidae. In: Last, P.R., White, W.T., Carvalho, M.R. de, Séret, B., Stehmann, M.F.W. & Naylor, G.J.P. (eds) Rays of the World. Clayton South, Victoria : CSIRO Publishing 790 pp.

McAuley, R. & Compagno, L.J.V. (SSG Australia & Oceania Regional Workshop, March 2003) 2003. Rhynchobatus laevis. In: IUCN 2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. . Downloaded on 08 March 2014.

Naylor, G.J.P., Caira, J.N., Jensen, K., Rodsana, K.A.M., White, W.T. & Last, P.R. 2012. A DNA sequence-based approach to the identification of shark and ray species and its implications for global elasmobranch diversity and parasitology. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 367: 1-262.

Rose, C. & McLoughlin, K. 2001. Review of Shark Finning in Australian Fisheries. Final Report to the Fisheries Resources Research Fund. Bureau of Rural Sciences, Canberra

Weigmann, S. 2016. Annotated checklist of the living sharks, batoids and chimaeras (Chondrichthyes) of the world, with a focus on biogeographical diversity. Journal of Fish Biology 88: 837–1037. doi: 10.1111/jfb.12874