Aetobatus ocellatus

(Figs. 2 A, 6 A, B) The eight specimens of Aetobatus Blainville from Sri Lanka were collected from landing sites in Palkanththura (SL- 2) and Pukulam (SL- 7) in the North Western Province and from fish markets in Kottadi (SL- 26, SL- 27, SL- 62), Munai (SL- 41), and Vankalai (SL- 68, SL- 69) in the Northern Province. All eight specimens exhibited the general color pattern that distinguishes Aetobatus ocellatus from its four described congeners in that the dorsal disc surface bears small white, round spots that do not extend onto the head. Some variation was seen across specimens — in the cases of SL- 41, SL- 62, and SL- 69; the white spots were essentially restricted to the posterior margins of the disc and the pelvic fins. The tree resulting from Neighbor-Joining analysis of NADH 2 data, which included representation of all four described species and the potentially undescribed species referred to as Aetobatus cf. ocellatus 1 and Aetobatus cf. ocellatus 2 by Naylor et al. (2012 a), generally supports this identification in that all eight specimens clustered most closely with our reference specimen of A. ocellatus from Malaysian Borneo (BO- 296; JQ 519092). However, within that cluster, two subclusters were apparent. Specimens SL- 26 and SL- 41 were identical in sequence, differing from the reference specimen of A. ocellatus by 6 bp. The six specimens in the second subcluster (SL- 2, SL- 7, SL- 27, SL- 62, SL- 68, and SL- 69), which differed from one another by 0 – 1 bp, differed from those in the first subcluster by 8 – 13 bp. However, these subclusters did not correspond to the color pattern differences seen. Investigation of additional specimens of Aetobatus from Sri Lanka is recommended and a comprehensive review of the white-spotted eagle rays in the Indo-West Pacific is sorely needed. This species has been referred to as Aetobatus narinari (Euphrasen) in all prior reports from Sri Lanka (see De Silva 1978, 2006, 2015; De Bruin et al. 1995; Morn et al. 1998). However this name is now reserved for the Atlantic member of this genus (see White et al. 2010).

Sumber: New insights into the identities of the elasmobranch fauna of Sri Lanka

IUCN standard name :: Spotted Eagle Ray Fig. 18, Table 2

Sumber: Cartilaginous fish diversity in the Western Visayas, Philippines, including two putative unidentified species and the first record of Carcharhinus plumbeus (Elasmobranchii: Carcharhiniformes: Carcharhinidae)

Morphological description. Body large; dorsal surface smooth; denticles and thorn absent from middle area; disc rhomboidal and broad, rather wide than long. Eyes moderately small and rounded; spiracles very large, located behind eye rather than below, and completely visible from dorsal view. Snout soft, large, protruding with blunt tip. Mouth moderately large. Nostrils large, partially covered by nasal flap; nasal flap moderately large, V-shaped, with posterior tips reaching lower jaw. Teeth plate on upper jaw rather wide than long in comparison to teeth plate on lower jaw; teeth on lower jaw elongated, extending beyond jaw, making it exposed when mouth is closed. Dorsal fin small, subtriangular with rounded apex. Pectoral fin very large, triangular with rounded apex, originating behind eye; anterior margin concave basally, becoming straight towards middle area, then convex towards rear; posterior margins concave in front, becoming straight towards rear; anterior edge entire or smooth and thick; posterior edge crenate and thin. Pelvic fin moderately elongated with rounded and crenate posterior margin. Tail tapering, very long, whip-like; dorsal and ventral folds absent; two spines positioned just behind dorsal fin; first spine was already removed upon purchase; second spine long, tapering with sharp, serrated margins. Gill slits located on underside short, with five on each side. Color of fresh specimen. Dorsal area gray to black covered with small white spots; ventral area white with black fin edges; spots mostly concentrated on the pectoral and pelvic fins; few similar spots on the nape area; tail black. Color of preserved specimen. Dorsal area dark brown; ventral area pale white; white spots still visible; tail black.

Sumber: Cartilaginous fish diversity in the Western Visayas, Philippines, including two putative unidentified species and the first record of Carcharhinus plumbeus (Elasmobranchii: Carcharhiniformes: Carcharhinidae)