Western Shovelnose Stingaree
Trygonoptera mucosa
- Least concern
- Card rarity: Common
- Sharks and rays
The western shovelnose stingaree is a common species of stingray in the family Urolophidae, inhabiting shallow sandy flats and seagrass beds off southwestern Australia from Perth to Gulf St Vincent. Growing to 37 cm (15 in) long, this small ray has a rounded pectoral fin disc and a blunt, broadly triangular snout. Its nostrils have enlarged lobes along the outer rims and a skirt-shaped curtain of skin between them with a strongly fringed posterior margin. Its tail ends in a lance-like caudal fin and lacks dorsal fins and lateral skin folds. This species is colored grayish to brownish above, sometimes with lighter and darker spots, and pale below, sometimes with darker marginal bands and blotches.
Classification
- Class
- Chondrichthyes
- Order
- Myliobatiformes
- Family
- Urolophidae
- Genus
- Trygonoptera