| Philippine guitarfish | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Order: | Rhinopristiformes |
| Family: | Rhinobatidae |
| Genus: | Rhinobatos |
| Species: | R. whitei |
| Binomial name | |
| Rhinobatos whitei (Corrigan & Naylor, 2014) | |
The Philippine guitarfish, known formally as Rhinobatos whitei, is a critically endangered species of cartilaginous fish in the genus Rhinobatos . [2] [3] [4] The species has been documented in the Pacific Ocean near the Philippines. [5] The documented sizes of Philippine guitarfish specimens ranges between 556-720 mm for male adults and female adults exceeding 720 mm. [6] The observed characteristics of the guitarfish is the difference of morphological features, coloration, pelvic and caudal features. [7] The observation of the species is rather rare due to the lack of sightings, capturing of the species, or mixing the taxonomic features with other species of guitarfish. [8]
Morphological Features
Disc shape: The observed shape of given specimens were broadly wedge-shaped with a blunt anterior and mildly bottlenose shape, differing from other species of its form. [9]
Tail Structure: The tail is observed to be elongated and slender, observed to be thicker and proximally to the body and becomes more slender distally. [10]
Coloration
Blotches and spots: Rusty brown blotches with faint white spots. [11]
Pelvic and Caudal Features
Pelvic Rays and Radials: Observed pelvic rays is 24-26
Caudal Centra Count: Observed caudal centra 43-48, relatively higher than other observed specimens within the species.
