Urotrygon venezuelae

Urotrygon venezuelae
Conservation status
Endangered  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Chondrichthyes
Subclass:	Elasmobranchii
Order:	Myliobatiformes
Family:	Urotrygonidae
Genus:	Urotrygon
Species:	U. venezuelae
Binomial name
Urotrygon venezuelae Schultz, 1949

Urotrygon venezuelae, the Venezuelan round ray, is a type of marine tropical ray mainly found in Venezuela. ^{[1] [2]}

Description

This species has several characteristics: wide disc, long tail, plain grayish colored dorsal region with no markings, cream colored ventral region, and prickly back. ^[2] The maximum female specimen of this species is around 36 cm total length. ^{[2] [1]}

Habitat & distribution

This extremely rare stingray occurs on western Atlantic Ocean from Cartagena, Colombia, to the Gulf of Venezuela. ^{[1] [2]} It inhabits estuaries, marine lakes, and lagoons at depths of 2-40 m. ^[1] It is often caught as bycatch by Colombian fisheries. ^[1]

References

1. IUCN (2019-07-01). Urotrygon venezuelae: Pollom, R., Herman, K., Lasso-Alcalá, O., Mejía-Falla, P.A. & Navia, A.F.: The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T63156A124463656 (Report). International Union for Conservation of Nature. doi:10.2305/iucn.uk.2020-3.rlts.t63156a124463656.en . Retrieved 22 February 2025.
2. Bigelow, Henry B.; Schroeder, William C. (2019-03-04), "Fishes of the western North Atlantic" , Sawfishes, Guitarfishes, Skates and Rays, Chimaeroids: Part 2, Yale University Press, pp. 1–514, doi:10.12987/9781933789255-003, ISBN   978-1-933789-25-5 , retrieved 2025-02-22