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Speartooth Shark (Glyphis glyphis)

The Speartooth Shark is a rare river and estuary shark of northern Australia. On works sites, clearing, dredging, bank works, waterway crossings and fishing activity can affect its turbid river habitat and moving juveniles. It is listed as Critically Endangered under Commonwealth law, Vulnerable in the Northern Territory, and is protected throughout Australia.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Critically endangered.

Northern Territory, Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1976: Vulnerable.

Breeding season

No month-specific breeding season has been established for the Speartooth Shark in Australia. Juveniles use river and estuarine habitats, while adults are presumed to move into coastal waters, so apply the same precaution across all months and regions.

Breeding mode: Live-bearing shark. Species-specific reproductive details are poorly known.

Litter size: An anecdotal litter size of 6 or 7 pups is reported. Other information for the genus indicates litters of fewer than 5.

Breeding frequency: Related information indicates breeding once a year or every 2 years.

Gestation period: Not recorded

Age at maturity: Not recorded

Breeding sites: Not recorded. No specific nursery, pupping or maternity site has been identified.

Size at birth: Approximately 50 to 60 cm.

Activity may vary between river systems and years, particularly with tides, freshwater flow, turbidity and dry season conditions, but no reliable month-based pattern has been established.

  • Breeding and pupping: No breeding or pupping months are known, so potential breeding activity should be treated as possible throughout the year.
  • Neonate and juvenile use of river habitat: Neonates and juveniles use turbid tidal reaches, freshwater upper reaches and other estuarine river habitat, with no confirmed seasonal window.
  • Tidal movements within rivers: Individuals move upstream and downstream with the tides, including movements of up to 25 km in one tidal cycle.
  • Presence in Australian river and estuarine habitat: The species is resident in scattered northern Australian river systems, but seasonal changes in occupancy are not established.
  • Highest clearing risk: There is no confirmed lower risk period, so avoid habitat disturbance in all months and manage turbid tidal, estuarine and freshwater river habitat as potentially occupied.

Identification: Appearance and size

The Speartooth Shark is a medium sized whaler shark with features suited to dark, turbid river water. Identification can be difficult in the field, especially where Bull Sharks and Northern River Sharks occur nearby.

Adults have not been observed in many areas, and the full adult appearance is poorly known. The species is slate grey to grey above and abruptly pale below, with a short, broadly rounded snout and small eyes.

The second dorsal fin is about two thirds to three quarters the height of the first dorsal fin. The upper teeth are broad, triangular and serrated. The lower teeth are narrower and more spear shaped, particularly in larger individuals.

Family: Carcharhinidae

Body form: Medium sized whaler shark

Maximum reported size: About 260 cm total length

  • Approximate size at birth is 50 to 60 cm.
  • The species is thought to grow to more than 2 m, possibly 2 to 3 m.
  • The waterline marking extends only a little below the eye.
  • Some individuals have dark blotches on the undersides of the pectoral fins. Colour can vary between regions.

Identification: Calls and similar species

Sharks do not produce calls or use echolocation in the way bats and some marine mammals do. No reliable call is available for field detection.

The species may be confused with a Bull Shark because both use rivers and estuaries. It may also be confused with the Northern River Shark. Do not rely on a photograph alone where the animal cannot be handled safely and lawfully.

  • A large second dorsal fin helps separate river sharks from Bull Sharks.
  • The Speartooth Shark has a shorter, broader snout than the Northern River Shark.
  • The waterline is just below the eye in the Speartooth Shark. It extends lower on the head of the Northern River Shark.
  • The two river sharks differ in vertebral and tooth counts, which require specialist examination.

Identification: Field signs and handling

There are no reliable droppings, nests, whitewash, odour or resting-site signs to search for. Presence is normally confirmed by capture, a clear photograph, environmental DNA or specialist survey work.

Treat any shark caught or observed in a project waterway as potentially protected until identified. Keep handling to a minimum and obtain expert advice before release, sampling or relocation.

  • Record the date, location, waterway, approximate size and photographs.
  • Do not gaff the animal.
  • If safe, remove the hook and line with a de-hooking device.
  • If the hook cannot be removed, cut the line as close to the hook as possible.
  • Report sightings and captures to the relevant wildlife or fisheries authority.

Distribution: Queensland

The Australian range is scattered across northern river systems. Records are concentrated in the Northern Territory and northern Queensland, with a possible but unverified record from Western Australia.

The species is associated with the Wenlock and Ducie rivers in the Port Musgrave area of western Cape York Peninsula. Historical records include the Bizant River in the Princess Charlotte Bay area and other older records from northern Cape York river systems.

The Bizant River records date from the early 1980s, and the species has not been recorded there since 1983. Treat historical locations as potential habitat rather than assuming that the species is absent.

  • Wenlock River.
  • Ducie River and Port Musgrave.
  • Historical Bizant River records.
  • Historical records from the Normanby, Hey and Embley river systems.

Distribution: Northern Territory

The species occurs in river systems draining the Van Diemen Gulf and adjacent northern coastal areas. Records include the Adelaide, South Alligator, East Alligator and West Alligator rivers, the Daly River and Murganella Creek.

The Van Diemen Gulf region appears to be the centre of abundance. Several river systems are close together, but each river should be managed as a separate population or management unit.

  • Alligator Rivers region, including Kakadu National Park.
  • Adelaide River and Daly River.
  • Other Van Diemen Gulf drainage rivers.

Distribution: Western Australia and overseas range

The species is mapped in Western Australia. A photograph of a shark from the Ord River resembled the species, but the animal was released and the record could not be verified. Confirm any Western Australian record with a specialist before relying on it for project decisions.

Outside Australia, the species is known from southern Papua New Guinea, including the Fly River and Port Romilly area.

  • Treat records from new catchments as significant and arrange expert identification.
  • Do not assume that a lack of recent records means that a river is unsuitable.

Habitat: River and estuary features

Look for the species in large tropical rivers, estuaries and connected coastal waters with tidal influence, soft mud and persistent turbidity. Juveniles and subadults are most often associated with tidal and upper river reaches.

Potential habitat includes broad river channels, tidal reaches, estuarine margins and connected floodplain waterways. Juveniles may move well inland in freshwater, particularly late in the dry season.

The species is euryhaline. Recorded salinities range from 0.8 to 28 parts per thousand, although captures are concentrated in turbid water rather than full strength seawater.

  • Tidal channels and river bends.
  • Upper freshwater reaches connected to estuarine habitat.
  • Muddy banks and fine soft substrates.
  • Floodplain channels that retain water or reconnect during tides and wet season flows.

Habitat: Turbidity and water conditions

Turbidity appears to be a strong habitat indicator. In the Wenlock River, captures occurred where Secchi depth was below 600 mm, and all 29 sharks captured in the 2007 survey were in salinities below 13 parts per thousand.

Record turbidity, salinity, water depth, tide, flow and substrate during aquatic surveys. Avoid treating a clear water period as evidence that habitat is not used at other times.

  • Highly turbid water, often with Secchi depth below 600 mm.
  • Tidal influence and changing salinity.
  • Fine mud rather than clean sandy substrate.
  • Low oxygen conditions may be tolerated by the genus.

Habitat: Site assessment

Before works in a northern Australian river or estuary, map the full aquatic footprint, including access tracks, pump intakes, temporary crossings, spoil areas and bank disturbance.

Use a precautionary approach in known or potential habitat. Escalate records, proposed in stream works and activities that may change turbidity, flow, connectivity or fishing pressure to the relevant authority.

  • Check current threatened species and fisheries requirements.
  • Include dry season and wet season waterway conditions in the risk assessment where feasible.
  • Maintain movement pathways between river, estuary and floodplain habitats.
  • Prevent sediment, fuel, concrete washout and other pollutants from entering the waterway.

Foraging habitat: Prey and feeding areas

The Speartooth Shark feeds mainly in turbid river and estuary water, close to soft substrates and within the water column above the river bed. Juveniles take small fish and freshwater crustaceans.

Recorded prey includes arid catfish, nurseryfish, bony bream, freshwater gobies, burrowing gobies, smalleye gudgeons, scaly jewfish and prawns. Adult diet is less well known.

Foraging habitat is likely to include turbid tidal channels, muddy river margins, deeper channel water and connected freshwater reaches that support fish and crustacean prey.

Feeding mode: Benthopelagic, using water above and near the river bed

Main prey: Fish, with prawns and other freshwater crustaceans recorded

  • Turbid channel edges and tidal creeks.
  • Soft mud and benthic habitat supporting small fish and crustaceans.
  • Freshwater reaches used by juvenile prey species.
  • River sections with good connectivity and natural flow.

Foraging habitat: Works that can affect feeding habitat

Bank clearing, dredging, piling, vessel activity and poorly controlled earthworks can alter turbidity, substrate and prey habitat. Sudden sediment plumes may also reduce water quality and affect fish communities.

Keep machinery, spoil and fuels out of the active channel. Use erosion and sediment controls that suit tidal rivers and remain effective through changing water levels.

  • Avoid unnecessary removal of muddy banks and shallow channel margins.
  • Prevent fine sediment from entering connected waterways.
  • Maintain natural flows and fish passage during temporary works.
  • Keep lighting, noise and vessel activity to the minimum needed near occupied waterways.

Breeding habitat: Likely nursery areas

Species specific breeding sites have not been identified. The available evidence indicates low reproductive output, so the loss of mature animals or juvenile nursery habitat can have lasting effects.

Neonates and juveniles use upper reaches of rivers and turbid tidal habitat. Small sharks have been recorded in freshwater and up to 100 km inland in northern Australia, while larger individuals occur closer to river mouths.

Treat turbid upper river reaches, connected floodplain channels and tidal nursery areas as potential juvenile habitat, even when no sharks are seen during a site inspection.

  • Shallow upper river reaches with persistent turbidity.
  • Tidal river sections connected to freshwater habitat.
  • Floodplain channels that retain aquatic connectivity.
  • Muddy margins used by juvenile prey.

Breeding habitat: Reproductive sensitivity

The species is thought to have small litters and to breed only every one or two years, based on information for the genus. Each river population may have limited capacity to recover after local losses.

There are no confirmed breeding months, gestation period or species specific breeding places to use for a seasonal clearance exemption. Apply protection throughout the year in known or potential habitat.

  • Do not capture, kill, injure or deliberately disturb sharks.
  • Avoid activities that isolate upper river and estuarine habitat.
  • Retain natural bank structure and aquatic connectivity.
  • Seek project specific advice before any in stream works in known habitat.

Breeding habitat: Survey approach

Adults are rarely encountered and breeding activity is not readily visible. A negative survey result should not be used by itself to clear a project from further assessment.

Use qualified aquatic ecologists and targeted methods suited to the waterway. Consider capture and release work, acoustic tracking or environmental DNA only under the required approvals and animal welfare controls.

  • Plan surveys across representative river reaches and tidal conditions.
  • Record life stage, size, location, salinity, turbidity and tide for every detection.
  • Share records promptly with the relevant threatened species and fisheries authorities.

Sheltering habitat: Areas to retain

No discrete shelter, den or resting structure has been identified for the Speartooth Shark. The species uses open river and estuary water, and tracked animals have remained well above the river bed.

Retain connected deep and shallow channel habitat, muddy margins, tidal creeks and floodplain channels. These areas can provide movement, cover from light and access to prey even when no fixed shelter is visible.

Juveniles and subadults may move with the tide between river sections. Avoid blocking channels or creating isolated pools.

  • Open turbid water above soft substrates.
  • Tidal channels and river bends.
  • Connected floodplain and backwater habitat.
  • Natural banks and submerged channel margins.

Sheltering habitat: Construction controls

Plan crossings and in stream structures to preserve aquatic passage across the full range of tides and flows. Keep temporary causeways, cofferdams, screens and pump intakes from trapping or injuring sharks.

Use fish friendly waterway designs and inspect temporary structures regularly. Remove temporary barriers as soon as the work allows.

  • Maintain upstream and downstream passage.
  • Screen pump intakes and prevent animals entering pipes or sumps.
  • Use low speed vessels and avoid unnecessary vessel movements in occupied habitat.
  • Stop work and seek advice if a shark is captured, injured or repeatedly observed.

Threats: Fishing and accidental capture

The main risks on works sites are direct capture or injury, loss of river and estuary habitat, and changes to water quality or connectivity. The species is naturally rare and has low productivity, so local impacts may take a long time to recover from.

Gillnets, recreational line fishing, crab traps and other fishing activity can capture Speartooth Sharks. Illegal fishing remains a concern in some Northern Territory waters.

Remove fishing gear from construction areas and brief all site staff, contractors and vessel operators. Use safe release procedures and report every capture or sighting.

  • Do not use gillnets or unapproved fishing gear near project works.
  • Do not use juveniles as bait.
  • Do not gaff, drag or unnecessarily handle a shark.
  • Cut line close to an embedded hook if safe hook removal is not possible.

Threats: Habitat loss and fragmentation

River impoundment, bank modification, dredging, clearing and poorly designed crossings can remove or isolate habitat. Impacts may extend beyond the construction footprint through changes to tidal exchange and fish passage.

Keep the active channel, muddy banks, tidal creeks and connected floodplain habitat intact wherever possible.

  • Avoid unnecessary bank clearing and channel straightening.
  • Maintain natural flow, tidal exchange and fish passage.
  • Do not place spoil or hardstand on floodplain channels or estuarine margins.
  • Design permanent crossings to retain aquatic connectivity.

Threats: Sediment and water quality

Sediment plumes, contaminated runoff, fuel spills, concrete washout and changes to dissolved oxygen can affect turbid river habitat and prey communities. Turbidity is part of the species' habitat, but uncontrolled sediment release can still cause harmful water quality changes.

Use a site specific erosion, sediment and spill response plan. Inspect controls after rainfall and during changing tides.

  • Keep fuels, chemicals and concrete away from the waterway.
  • Contain dewatering discharge and test it before release where required.
  • Limit exposed soil and stabilise disturbed banks quickly.
  • Stop and report any spill or uncontrolled discharge.

Threats: Lighting, noise and vessel activity

Construction lighting, piling, vessel traffic and repeated disturbance can affect animals using tidal channels, particularly where works occupy a narrow river reach. The species moves with tides, so disturbance can affect more than the immediate work area.

Schedule the least intrusive method that meets the project need and maintain a clear response procedure for shark observations.

  • Keep lighting directed onto the work area and away from the channel.
  • Use low speed vessel operations and defined transit routes.
  • Avoid unnecessary piling, dredging and vessel movements in occupied habitat.
  • Nominate a fauna contact who can stop or modify work after a protected species interaction.

Survey methodology: 1. Desktop assessment

The Speartooth Shark is rare, poorly known and difficult to distinguish from Bull Sharks and Northern River Sharks. Surveys should focus on turbid, tidal and freshwater reaches of large tropical rivers, with specialist identification and permits in place before any capture work.

Map all rivers, creeks, floodplain channels, estuarine areas and coastal waters connected to the work area.

Check records for Speartooth Shark, Northern River Shark and Bull Shark. Treat each river system as a separate management unit.

Review proposed works for changes to flow, tidal access, turbidity, salinity, substrate, water quality, fishing access and gillnet activity.

Use the precautionary approach where records are absent. The species has been missed by broad river surveys and may be confused with other sharks.

Known Australian setting: Northern tropical rivers, tidal reaches, estuaries and connected coastal waters in Queensland, the Northern Territory and potentially Western Australia.

Useful habitat indicators: Turbid water, tidal influence, fine muddy substrate, freshwater to brackish reaches and river connections that remain open to movement.

  • Obtain advice from the relevant state fisheries and threatened species authority.
  • Check whether the action requires an EPBC Act referral or approval.
  • In Queensland, check whether a species management program is required for tampering with a breeding place or protected wildlife impacts.

Survey methodology: 2. Targeted field survey

Use an experienced elasmobranch ecologist to design any capture survey. Suitable methods may include permitted baited drumlines, longlines, gill nets used under strict authority, or other low injury methods selected by the specialist.

Consider environmental DNA, remote cameras and acoustic receivers as supplementary tools. Use acoustic tagging only under an approved research and animal ethics program.

Sample the full salinity and tidal gradient, including freshwater reaches, brackish sections, turbid nursery habitat and areas near the river mouth.

Repeat surveys across suitable tidal conditions and seasons where the risk warrants it. A single negative survey should not be treated as proof that the species is absent.

Recorded habitat range: Recorded salinities range from 0.8 to 28 parts per thousand. Captures are associated with highly turbid water and tidal or estuarine reaches.

Movement: Individuals move upstream and downstream with the tide. Movements of up to 25 km in one tidal cycle have been recorded.

  • Stop or redesign sampling if a method creates unacceptable risk to sharks, sawfish, turtles or other protected fauna.
  • Use equipment and release procedures that minimise capture time, handling and injury.
  • Have a confirmed identification specialist review photographs, measurements and, where authorised, tissue or genetic samples.

Survey methodology: 3. Identification and field records

Photograph the whole animal, head, teeth, dorsal fins, pectoral-fin undersides, flank watermark and ventral surface before release, where safe and authorised.

Record total length, sex, life stage, apparent condition, capture method, exact location, depth, tide, salinity, temperature, turbidity, substrate and habitat type.

Record the time spent handling the animal and its release direction and condition.

Do not identify a suspected Speartooth Shark from one feature alone. Obtain expert confirmation, especially where Bull Sharks or Northern River Sharks occur.

Useful identification features: Short broadly rounded snout, small eyes, large second dorsal fin, triangular serrated upper teeth and a side watermark that extends only marginally below the eye.

  • Record the river system and the distance from the river mouth or tidal limit.
  • Submit records and photographs to the relevant threatened species and fisheries authority.
  • Treat a confirmed record as sensitive location information and limit public release of exact coordinates.

Survey methodology: 4. Construction risk survey

Where works may affect a river, estuary, floodplain connection or coastal inshore habitat, undertake a risk assessment before mobilisation.

Survey for direct capture risk, entanglement, vessel strike, dewatering, altered flows, sediment release, obstruction of tidal movement, noise, lighting and water quality changes.

Use the highest survey effort where the work is near known or potential juvenile habitat. Juveniles and subadults use turbid tidal reaches and may move into freshwater.

Seek specialist advice before using exclusion nets, fish rescue, translocation or temporary barriers. These actions can cause injury or block movement.

  • Include wet and dry season access and the full tidal cycle in the assessment where the project may alter connectivity.
  • Plan for safe shutdown if a shark or other protected aquatic animal is detected.
  • Do not rely on visual surface searches alone. The species can occur in turbid water and may be submerged or outside the immediate work footprint.

Before habitat disturbance: 1. Approvals and permits

Avoidance is the preferred control for this critically endangered species. Treat connected river and estuarine habitat as potentially occupied where the species is known, suspected or cannot be confidently ruled out.

Confirm whether the project is likely to have a significant impact on the Speartooth Shark under the EPBC Act. Make an EPBC referral where required and do not start a controlled action without the necessary approval.

Obtain Queensland approvals for protected wildlife, fisheries activities and any species management program that applies to the work. Check requirements for tampering with a breeding place before disturbing river or estuarine habitat.

In the Northern Territory, obtain approvals under the Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act and fisheries legislation where applicable. Confirm requirements for works in Kakadu National Park or other reserves.

Check Western Australian requirements if the project affects a potential habitat area or involves capture, handling, waterway alteration or fauna relocation.

Include permit conditions in the construction environmental management plan and brief all contractors.

Listing level: Critically endangered under Commonwealth legislation and vulnerable in the Northern Territory.

Management implication: Use the highest level of avoidance, survey, supervision, reporting and incident response.

  • Nominate the approval holder and an environmental authority for the site.
  • Keep copies of permits, conditions, fauna licences and contact details at the work front.
  • Do not rely on a general fauna spotter catcher licence for aquatic capture or shark handling.

Before habitat disturbance: 2. Avoidance and site controls

Redesign works to avoid river channels, tidal reaches, floodplain connections, muddy banks, deep pools and areas that retain water during the dry season.

Maintain tidal and freshwater connectivity. Do not place temporary crossings, cofferdams, screens, bunds or culverts where they restrict shark movement unless specifically assessed and approved.

Prevent sediment, fuel, concrete washout, contaminated water and other pollutants from entering the river or estuary.

Prohibit gill nets, fishing and other activities that could capture sharks within the work area or project access zone.

  • Mark aquatic exclusion areas on plans and in the field.
  • Use site-specific no-entry and no-work zones based on habitat mapping, hydrology and permit conditions.
  • Keep plant, spoil, lighting and storage areas outside the riparian and floodplain connection wherever practicable.
  • Use low-impact access routes and maintain a clear emergency shutdown route.

Before habitat disturbance: 3. Pre-clearance and timing

Complete a pre-start aquatic fauna assessment immediately before in-water works, dewatering, piling, dredging, bank excavation or installation of temporary barriers.

There is no confirmed breeding season, breeding place or migration calendar for the Speartooth Shark. Do not assume that a particular month is low risk.

Plan works outside periods of high flow, extreme turbidity or known juvenile use where the specialist assessment identifies a lower risk window.

Repeat the assessment if conditions change, if work is delayed, or if the river connection, tide or water level changes materially.

  • Inspect all pools, channels, drains and connected floodplain waters that may contain animals before isolation or dewatering.
  • Use approved aquatic fauna rescue procedures where water must be removed.
  • Do not begin isolation until an authorised aquatic fauna specialist confirms that the method is suitable.

Before habitat disturbance: 4. Induction and emergency planning

Induct all workers on the protected status of the species, likely habitat, identification limitations and the stop-work process.

Explain that deliberate capture or destruction is illegal in the Northern Territory and that Commonwealth and state controls may also apply elsewhere.

Display photographs and contact details for the fauna spotter catcher, aquatic specialist, site supervisor and relevant authority.

Include a written response for a live shark, dead shark, entangled animal, injury, pollution event, blocked passage or unauthorised fishing.

  • Tell workers never to enter the water to handle a shark unless they are authorised, trained and operating under an approved procedure.
  • Provide safe radios or phones at each work front.
  • Brief vessel operators on slow-speed operation, exclusion areas and reporting requirements.

During habitat disturbance: 1. Sequential works and supervision

Work progressively and keep aquatic habitat connected wherever possible. Any suspected Speartooth Shark, capture, injury or change to river conditions must trigger the agreed stop-work and notification process.

Clear and isolate the smallest practicable area at one time. Work from disturbed areas towards undisturbed areas only where this does not force animals into danger or block escape routes.

Keep a qualified fauna spotter catcher or aquatic fauna specialist present for dewatering, bank works, pile installation, dredging, netting, temporary crossings and other high-risk activities.

Inspect screens, pumps, sumps, trenches and isolated pools at intervals set by the aquatic specialist and permit conditions.

Maintain safe passage around temporary works unless an approved rescue and relocation plan is operating.

  • Stop work before closing a channel, drain or pool if the area has not been checked.
  • Use fish-friendly pump intakes and screens designed by the aquatic specialist.
  • Remove temporary barriers as soon as they are no longer required.

During habitat disturbance: 2. Stop-work authority and animal handling

Give the fauna spotter catcher authority to stop work immediately. The supervisor must support that decision and make the area safe.

Only authorised people may capture, restrain, measure, tag, sample or release a suspected Speartooth Shark.

Do not gaff, drag, lift by the tail or handle the animal unnecessarily. Keep capture and handling time as short as possible.

Use an approved release method that keeps the shark supported in water and returns it to suitable connected habitat.

  • Photograph the animal without delaying release.
  • If identification is uncertain, treat it as a Speartooth Shark until an expert confirms otherwise.
  • Do not relocate the animal to another river system or release it into unsuitable water without written approval and specialist direction.

During habitat disturbance: 3. Active breeding place or aggregation

No species-specific breeding place, colony, roost or maternity site is known for the Speartooth Shark. If an aggregation of sharks, neonates or unusually small juveniles is found, treat it as potentially important habitat.

Stop work in the affected area and prevent fishing, netting, vessel activity and further disturbance.

Establish a site-specific exclusion area with the aquatic specialist and relevant authority. The distance and duration must reflect the channel, tide, water quality and work method.

Do not disturb, fill, dewater or obstruct the area until the approval holder and regulator agree on the response.

  • Record the number, size range, behaviour, habitat, tide, salinity, turbidity and exact location.
  • Arrange expert identification and genetic or photographic confirmation where authorised.
  • Review the design and consider permanent avoidance.

During habitat disturbance: 4. Injured, dead or entangled animals

Stop the activity that caused or may be causing the risk. Keep people and plant clear of the animal.

Call the aquatic fauna specialist and relevant fisheries or threatened species authority immediately.

If safe and authorised, remove fishing line or a hook with suitable equipment. If a hook cannot be removed, cut the line close to the hook. Do not attempt invasive treatment on site.

For a dead animal, do not move or dispose of the carcass until the authority confirms whether examination, retention or sampling is required.

  • Record photographs, location, date, time, species identification, injuries, likely cause and animal condition.
  • Preserve evidence of nets, hooks, machinery settings, water quality events or other causes.
  • Follow the approved wildlife veterinarian or fisheries pathway for serious injury or mortality.

During habitat disturbance: 5. Daily records

Keep a daily aquatic fauna register for searches, captures, sightings, injuries, mortalities, releases, work stoppages and authority notifications.

Record all changes to flow, turbidity, salinity, water level, barriers, pumps, lighting and access.

Report confirmed records through the approval and permit channels, not only through the project incident system.

  • Include coordinates, river system, habitat, tide, weather and photographs.
  • Record names and qualifications of people who handled or identified the animal.
  • Attach the register to the project environmental records and retain it for the required approval period.

After habitat disturbance: 1. Post-clearance checks

The site is not clear of risk when machinery leaves. Confirm that aquatic habitat remains connected, no animals are trapped and all approval conditions have been met before closing the work package.

Inspect the full work area, temporary barriers, pump lines, trenches, sumps, culverts, screens and downstream receiving waters after each work stage.

Check for trapped, stranded, injured or dead aquatic animals. Include connected floodplain waters and isolated pools.

Confirm that temporary crossings, bunds, screens and pumps have not left obstructions or changed flow paths.

Obtain sign-off from the aquatic specialist before demobilising from in-water works.

  • Repeat checks after the first suitable tide or flow following removal of temporary works.
  • Remove waste netting, line, mesh, cable, spoil and construction debris from the waterway.
  • Record all clearances, findings and corrective actions.

After habitat disturbance: 2. Reporting and compliance

Submit records to the Commonwealth and state agencies specified in approvals and permits.

Report every confirmed Speartooth Shark, injury, death, capture, unauthorised fishing event, pollution incident and barrier failure within the required timeframe.

Update the project risk assessment if a record is confirmed or habitat conditions differ from the pre-work assessment.

  • Provide maps, photographs, survey methods, effort, environmental conditions, animal measurements and release details.
  • Document any approval breach and corrective action immediately.
  • Share sensitive records only with agencies, land managers and qualified researchers who need them.

After habitat disturbance: 3. Relocated animals and habitat checks

Where relocation was authorised, confirm the release location, water conditions, connectivity and animal condition with the aquatic specialist.

Inspect the release area for barriers, poor water quality, unsuitable salinity, pumps, nets and vessel hazards.

Where practical, use approved tagging or genetic sampling to support identification and movement monitoring. Do not apply tags or take samples without authority.

Do not assume that a released animal has survived. Include follow-up monitoring where required by the permit or specialist plan.

  • Record release time, location, tide, salinity, turbidity, depth, direction of release and behaviour.
  • Notify the authority if the animal is found again, behaves abnormally or cannot be relocated as planned.
  • Review whether relocation should be avoided in future in favour of design changes.

After habitat disturbance: 4. Monitoring and incident review

Monitor water quality, channel form, flow, tidal access and fish passage for the period specified in approvals and the environmental management plan.

Use repeat visual, capture, environmental DNA or acoustic methods only where they are safe, approved and suited to the site.

Review incidents with the project manager, aquatic specialist, fauna spotter catcher, contractor and regulator where required.

Change construction methods, timing or exclusion areas if monitoring shows increased risk or habitat degradation.

  • Compare post-work conditions with the baseline record.
  • Track all corrective actions to closure.
  • Retain monitoring data so it can contribute to river-system population management.

Rehabilitation actions: 1. Restore river function

Rehabilitation should restore connected river and estuarine habitat rather than create isolated water features. The main goals are to protect turbid tidal and freshwater habitat, maintain movement and prevent future fishing and water quality impacts.

Reconnect floodplain channels, tidal creeks and freshwater reaches where the project has altered them, subject to hydrological and approval requirements.

Remove temporary barriers and redundant culverts, bunds, crossings and hardstand areas from the waterway.

Reinstate stable banks and natural bed levels using local materials and methods suited to the river system.

Avoid creating stagnant pools, sharp drop-offs, fish traps or structures that restrict upstream and downstream tidal movement.

  • Use an aquatic ecologist and fluvial or coastal specialist to design the rehabilitation.
  • Stage earthworks to limit sediment release and maintain a safe passage route.
  • Monitor flow, salinity, turbidity and channel stability after reinstatement.

Rehabilitation actions: 2. Water quality and vegetation

Control sediment, hydrocarbons, concrete washout, rubbish and contaminated runoff during rehabilitation and maintenance.

Stabilise exposed banks with locally appropriate native riparian vegetation and natural debris where it will not obstruct movement.

Remove invasive weeds from disturbed banks and floodplain edges using methods that do not contaminate the waterway.

Maintain shade, bank cover and soft muddy substrate where these are natural features of the site.

  • Use clean water diversion and sediment controls during works.
  • Prevent herbicide, fertiliser and mulch from entering aquatic habitat.
  • Inspect rehabilitation after rainfall, high flow and the first major wet season.

Rehabilitation actions: 3. Lighting, noise and access

Remove temporary lighting after construction. Where permanent lighting is needed, direct it away from the river and use the lowest practical intensity.

Limit night work, vessel activity and underwater noise near occupied or potential habitat unless approved and specifically managed.

Restrict vehicle, boat and public access that could increase fishing, gillnetting or disturbance in sensitive river reaches.

Maintain clear signage stating that protected river sharks must not be targeted or harmed.

  • Use shielded, warm-colour lighting where lighting cannot be avoided.
  • Keep lights off water surfaces where practicable.
  • Include fishing controls in the long-term site management plan.

Rehabilitation actions: 4. Replacement structures and habitat features

Do not install nest boxes, bat boxes, artificial nest sites or roost structures for the Speartooth Shark. These features do not suit a river shark.

Where habitat structures are proposed, use only aquatic features designed for the local river system, such as fish passage or bank stabilisation measures, and obtain specialist approval first.

Do not create artificial pools or enclosed refuge areas unless their connection, water quality and effect on shark movement have been assessed.

Treat any recurring juvenile aggregation as a potential conservation feature and prioritise permanent protection over artificial replacement.

  • Have the design reviewed by an aquatic ecologist and the relevant authority.
  • Do not substitute artificial habitat for avoidance of existing river habitat.
  • Monitor any installed aquatic structure for blockage, stranding, injury and changes in movement.

Rehabilitation actions: 5. Long-term monitoring

Monitor rehabilitation for habitat connectivity, water quality, turbidity, salinity, bank stability, fishing pressure and protected aquatic fauna.

Use a monitoring program scaled to the risk and the listing level. A project affecting known habitat should have stronger and longer monitoring than a project with only potential habitat risk.

Include seasonal and tidal conditions where they affect access or shark movement.

Review results with the relevant authority and adjust maintenance, access controls or rehabilitation methods when required.

Recovery context: The species has low productivity, small populations and limited capacity for recovery after localised decline.

  • Keep a permanent record of shark sightings, captures, mortalities and habitat changes.
  • Protect exact locations of confirmed animals from unnecessary public disclosure.
  • Continue monitoring until performance criteria in the approval or management plan are met.

Sources