Spotted round ray
Urobatis maculatus, known as the spotted round ray or Cortez round stingray, is a species of round ray, within the genus Urobatis, and of the family Urotrygonidae.[2] It is endemic to Mexico, with its natural habitats being shallow seas, subtidal aquatic beds, coral reefs, estuarine waters, intertidal marshes, and coastal saline lagoons.
Spotted round ray | |
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Spotted round ray in Bahía de Loreto National Park | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Chondrichthyes |
Superorder: | Batoidea |
Order: | Myliobatiformes |
Family: | Urotrygonidae |
Genus: | Urobatis |
Species: | U. maculatus |
Binomial name | |
Urobatis maculatus (Garman, 1913) | |
Synonyms | |
Urolophus maculatus Garman, 1913 |
Spotted round rays reach a length of 42 centimetres (17 in) TL.[3] The spotted round ray is ideal for captivity due to its hardiness and smaller size, and it is also a favorable candidate for breeding in aquaria.[4] It can be kept in a minimum 180 gallon aquarium with fine substrate, little décor, a bottom with much surface area (for sufficient swimming space), excellent filtration, protected internal tank equipment like heaters and filter intakes (by surrounding them with polyurethane foam barriers), and a secure lid.[4] In the aquarium trade, it may be confused with the Round stingray, Urobatis halleri, which in the hobby may be called the Cortez ray as well.[5]
The spotted round ray can be parasitized by the flatworm Pleorchis magniporus.[6]
References
- Pollom, R.; Bizzarro, J.; Burgos-Vázquez, M.I.; Avalos, C.; Herman, K.; Pérez Jiménez, J.C.; Sosa-Nishizaki, O. (2020). "Urobatis maculatus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T60110A124439208. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T60110A124439208.en. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
- Moral-Flores, L.F.D.; Angulo, A.; López, M.I.; Bussing, W.A. (2015). "A new species of Urobatis (Myliobatiformes: Urotrygonidae) from the tropical Eastern Pacific". Revista de Biología Tropical. 63 (2): 501–514. doi:10.15517/rbt.v63i2.15746.
- Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2015). "Urolophus maculatus" in FishBase. February 2015 version.
- Michael, Scott (2001). Aquarium Sharks & Rays. Neptune City, NJ: T.F.H Publications, Inc.
- (2010): cortez/round stingray care | Saltwaterfish.com. . In: Saltwaterfish.com.
- Merlo-Serna, Aldo Iván; García-Prieto, Luis (15 Feb 2016). "A checklist of helminth parasites of Elasmobranchii in Mexico". ZooKeys (563): 73–128. doi:10.3897/zookeys.563.6067. PMC 4797213. PMID 27047240.