Fine-tuning established morphometric models through citizen science data

Veronika N. Biskis; Kathy A. Townsend; David L. Morgan; Karissa O. Lear; Bonnie J. Holmes; Barbara E. Wueringer

doi:10.1111/csp2.13308

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Fine-tuning established morphometric models through citizen science data

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Fine-tuning established morphometric models through citizen science data

Veronika N. Biskis, Kathy A. Townsend, David L. Morgan, Karissa O. Lear, Bonnie J. Holmes and Barbara E. Wueringer

Conservation Science and Practice, Vol.7(3), pp.1-17

2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/csp2.13308

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Abstract

conservation science

ontogenic

Pristidae

residual analysis

rostrum

sawfish

total length

For globally threatened species, patchy data pose challenges in both establishing historical baselines and assessing current distributions. In the case of sawfishes, much previous research has relied on amputated trophy rostra or historical photographs to fill data gaps in distribution and population estimates. However, the established morphometric models that allow the estimation of total length from rostra are restricted by the data available to generate them, with many constructed solely from juvenile morphometric data, and robust error testing rarely performed. This study generates an independent dataset from citizen science photographs and field measurements, incorporating sawfishes of all life history stages, to test the robustness of previously proposed models for the four Indo-Pacific sawfish species. Rostrum-to-length morphometric models (RLMs) were confirmed for Pristis clavata and Pristis pristis, and a new model was proposed for Pristis zijsron. A key source of error in previous RLMs for Anoxypristis cuspidata was identified as changing rostrum morphology with body size, but there were insufficient measurements in the present dataset to propose a new robust model for this species. This study highlights the problems associated with extrapolating total lengths of animals beyond the size bounds used to produce the original model. For historically exploited species like sawfishes, which are often represented in collections by trophies alone, these methods outline a critical step prior to use in further ecological study.

Details

Title: Fine-tuning established morphometric models through citizen science data
Authors: Veronika N. Biskis (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Kathy A. Townsend - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
David L. Morgan - Murdoch University
Karissa O. Lear - Murdoch University
Bonnie J. Holmes - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Barbara E. Wueringer - Macquarie University
Publication details: Conservation Science and Practice, Vol.7(3), pp.1-17
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Date published: 2025
DOI: 10.1111/csp2.13308
ISSN: 2578-4854
Copyright note: © 2025 The Author(s). Conservation Science and Practice published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Data Availability: Morphometric data supporting the results in the paper will be archived in an appropriate public repository for future inclusion into the most accurate models for each species.
Grant note: Save Our Seas Foundation. Grant Numbers: 309, 278, 457; Office of the Queensland Chief Scientist, Queensland Government (Citizen Science Grant, Engaging Science Grant); Shark Conservation Fund (Small Grant); Sea World Research and Rescue Foundation
Organisation Unit: Graduate Research School; School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991110916002621
Output Type: Journal article

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Web Of Science research areas: Biodiversity Conservation

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