Jamaican stingray
| Jamaican stingray | ||||||||||||
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Jamaican stingray ( Urobatis jamaicensis ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Urobatis jamaicensis | ||||||||||||
| ( Cuvier , 1816) |
The Jamaican stingray ( Urobatis jamaicensis ), also known as the yellow stingray, is a small ray that occurs in the warmer western Atlantic from the coast of North Carolina via the Bahamas , the Caribbean , the Gulf of Mexico to the north coast of South America.
features
The Jamaican stingray becomes a maximum of 76 centimeters long. The top of the body is yellowish or gray-brown, usually with dark dots or reticulated markings. The ventral side is brown-white, yellowish or greenish. It is able to change its color significantly. Its body disc is almost round. The darkly dotted tail has a well-developed caudal fin and, on top, a long venomous sting that can cause painful wounds. A dorsal fin is missing, as are thorns on the edges of the body.
Way of life
The Jamaican stingray usually lives close to the coast in shallow water from the surface of the water up to 25 meters. The fish are frequent and not shy. Preferred habitats are sandy regions or soil covered with mussel break, sometimes near coral reefs or areas overgrown with algae or seaweed. Jamaican stingrays are ovoviviparous and give birth to three to four young rays per litter, which are 15 cm long at birth. During copulation, the male swims under the female in a supine position. Jamaican stingrays feed on shrimp, possibly small fish, clams, and worms as well. To attract prey to seek hiding places, Jamaica stingrays form a tunnel with their body disc.
literature
- Hans A. Baensch , Robert A. Patzner: Mergus Sea Water Atlas Volume 7 Perciformes (Perciformes) , Mergus-Verlag, Melle, 1998, ISBN 3-88244-107-0
- Ewald Lieske, Robert F. Myers: Coral fish of the world . 1994, year publisher, ISBN 3-86132-112-2
Web links
- Jamaican stingrays on Fishbase.org (English)
- Urobatis jamaicensis inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013.1. Listed by: Piercy, AN, Snelson Jr., FF & Grubbs, RD, 2006. Retrieved November 3, 2013.