Common Name
Southern Stingray
Year Described
Hildebrand & Schroeder, 1928
Identification
A short-snouted species of Dasyatis with a broad rhomboidal disk. Eyes and spiracle large. Tips of pectoral fins subangular (not rounded). Pre-orbital length much longer than distance between the spiracles, with slightly convex margins of snout. The dorsal surface has a line of medial and two scapular series of denticles. Median denticles continue down the tail to the caudal spine. Additional denticles on the head are often present. Ventral finflap much larger than dorsal, but both well developed. Tail long and whip-like with spine close to tail base. Pelvic fins protrude beyond pectorals.
Color
Dorsum colored in variable shades of brown, from olive to yellowish. Underside white, often with black on the fin margins.
Size
Maximum size to around 150cm DW.
Habitat
Shallow continental waters (<100m) over sandy bottoms.
Range
New Jersey to Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.
References
Last, P. R., Naylor, G. J. P., & Manjaji-Matsumoto, B. M. 2016. A revised classification of the family Dasyatidae (Chondrichthyes: Myliobatiformes) based on new morphological and molecular insights. Zootaxa, 4139 (3): 345-368.
Santos, H.R.S. and M.R. de Carvalho. 2004. Description of a new species of whiptailed stingray from the southwestern Atlantic Ocean (Chondrichthyes, Myliobatiformes, Dasyatidae). Boletim do Museu Nacional do Rio de Janeiro, Nova Série. Zoologia No. 516: 1-24.
Other Notes
Moved from Dasyatis to Hypanus based on morpological and molecular data (Last et al., 2016).