The fearsome teeth of the rostrum of the saw-fish belie the comparatively peaceful nature of these large fish. Although a relative of the sharks, the saw fish is generally not aggressive towards man, but is greatly feared by bathers and shore netters in the tropics where it is common as the ash of its saw can inflict terrible wounds. The saw-fish more usually uses its saw to slash sideways into the shoals of small school-fish on which it feeds or to grub in the sand for small crustaceans which also form part of its diet.