This is the Dasyatidae bathytoshi or Broad Stingray
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This beautiful ray is the Broad Stingray, aka Brown Stingray, or Hawaiian Stingray.
It is in the family of Dasyatidae and the genus is Bathytoshi and the species is lata. Rays are about 20-25 million years old. They are in the same sub-order of rays, sharks, and skates. Their skeletons are all made of cartilage. This is one of four species found in the Hawaiian waters. These guys are not super common to see.
It is flat and diamond shape with a gray to brown coloration along the top of the ray. The bottom of the ray is a creamy white or tannish shade. We call this counter-shading and it plays a role assisting as a defense mechanism. The body is wider than it is long and the whip like tail is 2x the length of the body. The body can be 3-6 feet wide. The tails are covered with sharp spines over the wider portion of their tail. There is also 1-3 venomous spines located near the top. They will typically lay flat, unless the ray feels threatened. If threatened, the spines will be raised and they can bend their tail towards their head. Thus giving them the ability to impale a predator above them. The spines are barbed and contain a venomous gland at its base that is full of a neurotoxin. It is believed that the spines are able to grow back if they are broken in about 6-9 months.
You may encounter them in as shallow as 8 feet of water but more commonly they are found in about 49-1000 feet. They prefer sandy or muddy bottoms that allow them to burrow and hide from their predators. Once burrowed in the sand, you may see only their eyes and their spiracles (respiratory organ). During the day, they will stay buried and come out at night to forage. Hunting for squid, octopus, and crabs. Like sharks, they have ampullae or sensory pores near their snout. This allows for them to sense electrical fields and may play a role during mating, finding prey, and avoiding predators. The ampullae are sensitive to the muscle contractions in their prey. The main predators to the ray are humans and the hammer-head shark. The Broad Stingray plays and important ecological role both as predator and prey thus contributing to the balance of the Hawaiian marine ecosystem.
The image above was taken during a Private Ocean Project Maui Snorkel Tour.
This colorful image was taken off a West Maui Beach by the dedicated staff of Ocean Project Maui. They offer custom, private snorkel tours around the island of Maui, Hawaii. Each #COLORSOFTHEOCEAN image you see in our monthly blog, was captured during a private guided snorkel tour. These amazing images, as well as images above and below the water of the clients/supporters are included in every tour at no additional cost.
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