Bull Ray

Pteromylaeus bovinus

Today's animal, the Bull Ray, is a very large Stingray that has a wide distribution. They live in the coastal waters of the Mediterranean, and along the Atlantic and Indian coasts of the African Continent.

These Rays have very flat, rounded snouts that kind of look like duckbills. In fact, in some parts of the world they are also called "Duckbill Rays." Including their tails, they can reach anywhere from 5-8ft in length, and can weigh well over 200lbs. Females are actually larger and heavier than the males, and the size different even extends to the size of their tale spine. It can grow up to 3in in females, but only half that in males.

Bull Rays are usually found in small groups. They live in coastal areas because they feed off of the small bottom-dwelling mollusks and crustaceans that are found there. These Rays also happen to be ovoviviparous, meaning they incubate their eggs internally and give birth to live young.

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IUCN Status : Data Deficient
Location : Atlantic, Indian Oceans
Size : Length up to 8ft (2.4m), Weight up to 220lbs (99kg)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Chondrichthyes -- Order : Myliobatiformes
Family : Myliobatidae -- Genus : Pteromylaeus -- Species : P. bovinus

Image : Fotonatura

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Smooth Butterfly Ray

Gymnura micrura

The Smooth Butterfly Ray, with its sleek body (thanks to very tiny denticles), actually has a genus name to match-- Gymnura derives from the Greek word for "naked." They are medium-sized rays, with males growing about four feet across and females reaching around 2.5.

These Rays live in the Atlantic Ocean, typically in tropical waters though they can be found as far north as Maryland. They live on the soft sediment bottoms of the continental shelves, feeding on small fish, crustaceans, and bivalves. On occasion they will swim into estuaries and brackish waters.

The species is Ovoviviparous, a term I do not get to use nearly enough. This means that they give birth to live young, but these young are still incubated in eggs... just inside the mothers body (aka there is no direct placental connection between mother and child). They have 3-4 pups per litter.

Smooth Butterfly Rays and humans don't have much interaction with one another. They aren't fished on any large commercial scale, and are only consumed in a handful of countries. They are not dangerous, as they don't posses spines. Currently they are listed as being Data Deficient.

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IUCN Status : Data Deficient
Location : Atlantic Ocean
Size : Width up to 4ft (1.2m)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Chondrichthyes -- Order : Myliobatiformes
Family : Gymnuridae -- Genus : Gymnura -- Species : G. micrura

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Lesser Electric Ray

Narcine bancroftii

The Lesser Electric Ray is a smaller species of ray that is found in the tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean Sea. They are very slow, sluggish swimmers, and are most commonly found in shallow, sandy waters.

As the name suggests, Lesser Electric Rays are able to create a small electric charge, thanks to two organs in front of their eyes. They are capable of producing up to 37volts, and use their skill to hunt prey and to defend themselves.

The Lesser Electric Ray is in trouble. The species is listed as Critically Endangered, due to high amounts of bycatch capture over years and years. Even if a captured Ray is set free, damage may have already been done, as pregnant captured females will often abort their offspring. Lesser Electric Rays are ovoviviparous, and can have very long gestational periods due to the ability to delay embryonic growth. Terminated pregnancies due to bycatch can have a huge impact on overall reproductive success in the species.

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IUCN Status : Critically Endangered
Location : Atlantic Ocean
Size : Length up to 18in (45cm)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Chondrichthyes -- Order : Torpediniformes
Family : Narcinidae -- Genus : Narcine -- Species : N. bancroftii

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Barndoor Skate

Skates are cartilaginous fish that look similar to Rays, which are probably more widely known. The Barndoor Skate, today’s animal, can be found in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean, swimming from the coasts of Canada all the way down to North Carolina. They are one of the largest Skates in this area of the ocean.

Dipturus laevis

You can identify a Barndoor Skate by its sharp angles, pointed snout, and reddish brown spotted dorsal side. They have very long lived and slow to grow. These fish don’t reach sexual maturity until the age of 11! 

Barndoor Skates are not picky when it comes to their food. They are exceptional predators, and will eat just about any type of small, benthic dwelling creature. This includes Crustaceans, Cephalopods, Fish, Mollusks, and Worms! 

Barndoor Skates have commercial value to humans, though they are not typically fished intentionally, and are often a bycatch. Their parts are used for bait, fish meal, and for pet food. The meat off their wings is consumed by humans. While these Skates were once abundant, their numbers have declined significantly since the 1960s. It is believed the population may have dropped by as much as 99% in certain areas. Since the 1990s, fishing has declined in their range, and prohibitions on their capture have allowed the population to become stable. 

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IUCN Status : Endangered

Location : Northwest Atlantic

Size : Length up to 5ft (1.5m)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata – Class : Chondrichthyes – Order : Rajiformes

Family : Rajidae – Genus : Dipturus – Species : D. laevis

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Spotted Eagle Ray

Aetobatus narinari

The Spotted Eagle Ray can be found swimming in coastal tropical waters around the world. Sometimes they even swim upstream into estuaries! These large Rays live in groups thaw swim close to the surface of the water. They can even leap out completely if they are threatened!

Spotted Eagle Rays are considered to be one of the most beautiful Rays. They have very angular wings and an amazing spotted pattern that covers the entire dorsal area. Their skin is smooth and does not posses the denticles that are sometimes found in Rays. Spotted Eagle Rays also  have incredibly long tails, which have venomous spines on them. When you include their tail length, these Rays can measure as long as 16.5ft (5m)!

Eagle Rays get their name from their beak-like mouths. They have have a single row of flat teeth in their upper and lower jaws, and these help them to open and crush shellfish. They also consume cephalopods, crustaceans, and fish.

Spotted Eagle Rays are listed as Near Threatened because they live in close proximity to a wide range of fishing gear. The fact that they have very small litter sizes and tend to live in large groups also makes it easy for populations to swiftly decline and rebound slowly.

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IUCN Status : Near Threatened

Location : Tropical Oceans

Size : Wingspan up to 10ft (3m)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Chondrichthyes -- Order : Myliobatiformes
Family : Myliobatidae -- Genus : Aetobatus -- Species : A. narinari

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Big Skate

Big Skate

Phylum : Chordata
Class : Chondrichthyes
Superorder : Batoidea
Order : Rajiformes
Family : Rajidae
Genus : Raja
Species : binoculata

Length : 6ft (1.8m)
Weight : 200lbs (81kg)

IUCN Status : Near Threatened

The appropriately named Big Skate is the largest of the North American skates, cartilaginous fish that belong to the superorder that also contains Rays. They can be found off the Pacific coast running from Alaska to California, at depths of up to 400ft (120m).

The Big Skate is very flat and pointy looking, with its nose and pectoral fins all coming to a tip. They also possess a thin tail that is just about as long as the body. They have two large patches on their back that resemble eyes and which are most likely used to confuse predators. The Big Skate's actual eyes on placed on top, but its mouth and gills are found on its underside, which is the perfect position for swimming around and sucking up fish and marine invertebrates.

Big Skates are egg-layers, and produce two very large capsules that can contain up to seven eggs each. It takes a full nine months for the eggs to hatch, and will take eight years for the males to become sexually mature, and up to thirteen for females!

Skates are often taken as bycatch. Their numbers have been affected by this incidental overfishing, and it doesn't help that they have a very slow growth rate, late sexual maturity, and low reproductive rates.

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Giant Freshwater Stingray

(Image Source)

The Giant Freshwater Stingray (Himantura chaophraya) is a massive, massive fish found in the tropical river waters of South East Asia and Australia. They can grow to sizes of over 94in across (about 240cm) and the largest specimen caught weighed 1,322lbs (600kg). Even their young are huge! They are an ovoviviparous species whose offspring can measure 13in (34cm) at birth!

Giant Freshwater Stringrays are in fact dangerous to humans, but not because they eat them. These creatures actually feed on small fish and invertebrates. However, as their name might suggest, they have stinging barbs on their tails. These venomous, mucus covered barbs can grow to 15in (38cm) long, and with their whip-like tails, these Stingrays can pierce bone.

These enormous creatures are currently very vulnerable, and all populations are listed as at least that by the IUCN. The Thailand sub-population is Critically Endangered. They faces issues with habitat destruction, fishing, mine-caused silt deposits, and population fragmentation.

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Manta Ray

Manta Rays (Manta birostris) are the largest of all rays, but worry not! They are harmless, graceful swimmers. Unlike some other ray species, that have no stingers. Mantas are very, very large, commonly measuring over 20ft wide. Some individuals can reach 30ft, and weigh over 3,000lbs. They are found in tropical and temperate near-coastal waters around the world.

Image Source

Did you know Manta Rays are closely related to sharks? And like their sharkish cousins the Basking and Whale Sharks, Mantas consume very tiny creatures. They have two fins on their head that almost resemble horns (perhaps a reason for their other common name, the Devil Ray) which suck in plankton and other small sea creatures. The prey is then filtered through gill rakes and consumed. Also like the aforementioned sharks, Manta Rays have tiny teeth which are unused.

Manta Rays mate belly to belly, and are ovoviviparous. Females give birth to only 1-2 pups at a time, which are already 4ft across when born. Their age of sexual maturity and overall lifespan is unknown.

Manta Rays are basically harmless to humans, but one should be careful around them due to their large size. They are currently listed as Near Threatened by IUCN.

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