Atlantis recently celebrated another milestone, where its conservation efforts are concerned, with the marking of the second birthday for its smalltooth sawfish pups. The smalltooth sawfish, a critically-endangered species, is a part of the ray family and uses its "saw" or rostrum to hunt prey and defend itself. The two male and two female pups were born on April 12, 2012 to Bimini Gal, the largest adult female sawfish at the resort's marine habitat facility, making Atlantis the only known facility in the world to have reproductive success with the smalltooth sawfish.
An Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) accredited facility, Atlantis has displayed smalltooth sawfish for over 18 years, acquiring its four adults - three females and one male - from Andros and Bimini between 1996 and 1999. The resort and aquarium has been working on a breeding program for several years. Since 2003, there has been limited success with sawfish reproduction, however, by systematically tracking and documenting the reproductive activity of the adults, conducting routine examinations, ultrasounds and drawing blood for hormonal studies, the Atlantis marine team, along with the resort's veterinarian team, was able to achieve this monumental feat.
There are now eight smalltooth sawfish in Atlantis' marine habitat. That's half of the world's zoological population!
The pups now measure at seven feet in size, weighing 80 pounds; they can be seen daily in Atlantis' Ruins Flats.

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