Black spotted torpedo rays
| Black spotted torpedo rays | ||||||||||||
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Black- spotted torpedo ray ( Torpedo fuscomaculata ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Torpedo fuscomaculata | ||||||||||||
| Peters , 1855 |
The blackspotted torpedo ( Torpedo fuscomaculata ) is a ray species from the family of the torpedo . It occurs in the southwest Indian Ocean from the coast of Mozambique to Cape Agulhas . Sightings in Sri Lanka and some of the smaller islands in the Indian Ocean are uncertain and require confirmation.
features
The largest known specimen of this ray was 64 cm long. They are brown to light gray in color, with numerous, large dark brown to black spots or lines on their backs. The underside is white. The caudal fin is small. There are numerous small papillae around the injection holes .
Way of life
Black-spotted torpedo rays live as solitary animals on sandy and muddy bottoms, but also go into rocky and coral reefs , where they hide in caves during the day. They occur at depths of three to 500 meters. Black-spotted torpedo rays hunt bottom-dwelling fish and octopus, locating their prey with light electrical shocks and then stunning them with strong electric shocks. They are ovoviviparous . After hatching, the young remain in the uterus and are fed with a liquid called "uterine milk". They are finally born in the summer.
literature
- Hans A. Baensch / Robert A. Patzner: Mergus Sea Water Atlas Volume 6 Non-Perciformes (Non-Perciformes) , Mergus-Verlag, Melle, 1998, ISBN 3-88244-116-X
Web links
- Blackspotted torpedo on Fishbase.org (English)
- The black-spotted torpedo ray on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species