Not just Shark
Pictures: Elasmodiver contains photos of sharks, skates, rays, and
chimaera's from around the world. It began as a simple web based
field guide to help divers find the best places to encounter
different species of sharks and rays but it has slowly evolved into
a much larger project containing information on all aspects of shark
diving and photography. There are now more than a thousand shark
pictures and sections on shark evolution, biology, and
conservation. There is a large library of reviewed shark books, a
constantly outdated shark taxonomy page, a monster list of shark
links, and deeper in the site there are numerous articles and
stories about shark encounters. Elasmodiver is now so difficult to
check for updates, that new information and pictures are listed on
an Elasmodiver Updates Page that can be accessed here:
If you're looking
for a broader range of marine life pictures the following links
represent a new area of elasmodiver.com that contains pictures of
other marine organisms and of marine habitats. This expansion of
Elasmodiver is in its first stages but will eventually include pages
on all types of marine mammals, bony fishes and marine invertebrates
as well as coastal habitats, reefscapes and other imagess relating
to the ocean. Please return regularly to enjoy the progress.
Identification:
Rhomboid disc with rounded pectoral tips and straight leading edges. Thorns
scattered on midline of back and prominent thorns along midline and sides of
tail. Tail approx twice body length with deep ventral finfold. Dorsum grey/brown
to olive brown. Ventrum pale.
Size: Maximum
disc width 210cm. Usually 100 to 130cm. At birth 35cm.
Habitat: Sand
and mud bottoms from intertidal to 270m. Inhabits coastal areas, estuaries, and
rivers.
Abundance and distribution:
Eastern Atlantic - Bay of Biscay to Angola and Madeira and Canary Islands. Also
entire Mediterranean. Western Atlantic - Georges Bank to Florida, Gulf of
Mexico, and Uruguay to Southern Brazil. Subtropical; 45°N - 35°S, 90°W -
36°E
Behavior:
Preys on teleost and cartilaginous fishes, crustaceans, and cephalopods.
Observations:
I have only seen one specimen in North American waters. This ray is definitely
observed more commonly in its Eastern Atlantic range.
Photographs: Los Gigantes, Tenerife,
Canary Islands, North West Africa.
Similar species: In the western
Atlantic: Southern
stingray, Bluntnose stingray. In the eastern Atlantic: Black Stingray. Black
stingray grows to similar size but lacks the thorns along the tail.
Reaction to divers:
May be approached with non threatening movements.
Diving logistics:
Los Gigantes on Tenerife is the place to encounter this species. Los Gigantes
Dive Centre runs feeds twice weekly that attract up to six species of rays
usually including this one.
Difficult to encounter in North American waters. May be more commonly sighted on
the Carolina wrecks than in Florida. Reports of sightings of this stingray are
welcome.
Other diving locations submitted by readers:
Tim Costikyan wrote:
I spotted two of these(roughtail
Stingrays) off Zachs Beach in
Marthas Vinyard in about 8' of water (july 24 2006).
Other names:粗尾魟China MainChinese,粗尾魟China MainMandarin Chinese,ΤρυγόναGreeceGreek,ΜούντριζαGreeceGreek,ΜούτρουβαGreeceGreek,ΑκανθοτρυγόναGreeceGreek,AkanthotrygonaGreeceGreek,BrazilPortuguese,Arraia-pregoBrazilPortuguese,BollMaltaMaltese,Boll denbu ahraxMaltaMaltese,Denizkedisi balığıTurkeyTurkish,Escurçana clavelladaSpainCatalan,EssanBeninFon GBE,Gestekelde pijlstaartrogNetherlandsDutch,İğnelivatoz balığıTurkeyTurkish,NeshtelieAlbaniaAlbanian,Ogończa zachodniaPolandPolish,OzouinBeninFon GBE,Pastenague à queue épineuseFranceFrench,Pastenague des îlesFranceFrenchFAO oldPastenague épineuseFranceFrench,PohjankeihäsrauskuFinlandFinnish,Raia-manteigaBrazilPortuguese,Raia-pregoBrazilPortuguese,RatãoAzores Is.Portuguese,Raya látigo lijaSpainSpanish,
Rayalátigo isleñaSpainSpanishFAO, oldRina balığıTurkeyTurkish,
Ruhalet pigrokkeDenmarkDanish, Ruhalet PilrokkeDenmarkDanish,ΣαλάχιGreeceGreek,StechrochenGermanyGerman,TaggspjutrockaSwedenSwedish,TratraBeninPila,TrigoneMaltaItalian,Trigone spinosoItalyItalian,Trnucha hruboocasáCzech RepCzech,Uge de cardasPortugalPortuguese,Uge-de-cardasPortugalPortuguese,UjaCape VerdeCreole, Uje-de-cardasCape VerdePortuguese.
References:
Fishbase.com
Scott W Michael - Reef Sharks and Rays of the
World.
