Feds move to protect guitarfish

Guitarfish are rocking new protections from the federal government.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) proposed Friday to list the common guitarfish and blackchin guitarfish as threatened species, because they could face extinction in the “foreseeable future.”

The agency warned guitarfish face reproductive threats, and current regulations are “inadequate to protect” them.

“We find that the main threat to these species is over-utilization for commercial purposes,” the agency said. “Mature adults, including near-term pregnant females, congregate in shallow waters to breed and give birth. This behavior is well understood and exploited by fishers…and exposes both species to capture.”

The NMFS also warned that pollution and coastal development may pose lesser threats to the survival of these guitarfish.

But the NMFS will not designate a critical habitat for guitarfish, because they do not live in waters surrounding the United States and fall outside their jurisdiction.

The protections stem from a 2013 petition from the WildEarth Guardians.

The public has 60 days to comment.