Rhinobatos rhinobatos
| Common guitarfish | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Order: | Rajiformes |
| Family: | Rhinobatidae |
| Genus: | Rhinobatos |
| Species: | R. rhinobatos |
| Binomial name | |
|
Rhinobatos rhinobatos Linnaeus, 1758 |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
|
The common guitarfish (Rhinobatos rhinobatos) is a species of cartilaginous fish in the family Rhinobatidae. It is native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. It is a bottom-dwelling fish feeding on crustaceans, other invertebrates and fish. The females give birth to live young. Its lifestyle makes it vulnerable to trawling and other fishing methods, populations seem to be declining and it has disappeared from parts of its range. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being "endangered".
The common guitarfish can grow to a length of about 147 cm (58 in), but a more normal length is about 80 cm (30 in). The dorsal surface is khaki-brown and the underparts are white. It is very similar in appearance to the blackchin guitarfish (Rhinobatos cemiculus), which shares its distribution, but is generally smaller, has larger eyes, more widely separated rostral ridges, a longer front nasal lobe and a wider back nasal flap.
The common guitarfish is found in the western North Atlantic Ocean. Its range extends from the southern end of the Bay of Biscay to Angola, including the Mediterranean Sea. It cruises slowly around just above the seabed, sometimes resting on the sand or mud and semi-covering itself with sediment.
The common guitarfish is a benthic fish, cruising along just above the sandy or muddy seabed and foraging for crustaceans, other invertebrates and fish. It is an ovoviviparous fish with one or two litters of live young being born each year, each litter being four to ten fish. The gestation period is about four months, and the young develop inside the female, obtaining nourishment from their yolk sacs at first, and later from uterine secretions of their mother.
...
Wikipedia