Benthobatis yangi, a new species of blind electric ray from Taiwan (Chondrichthyes: Torpediniformes: Narcinidae)
Abstract:A new species of electric ray of the genus Benthobatis Alcock, 1898 is described on the basis of five specimens from the continental slope off Tungkang, southwestern Taiwan. Benthobatis yangi, n. sp., is distinguished from all other species of the genus by a unique combination of characters, including a dark brown to purplish–black dorsal and ventral coloration with irregular creamy blotches ventrally, a narrow nasoral region, a small mouth with slender jaws and shallow circumoral groove, a second dorsal fin with a more broadly rounded apex and more convex posterior margin compared to the first dorsal fin, an interdorsal distance greater than the distance between second dorsal and caudal fins, a narrow and not posteriorly arched suprascapula, size at sexual maturity, and a relatively high number of caudal vertebral centra, and consequently, total vertebral centra. Benthobatis yangi is known from adults and juveniles of both sexes. It is only the fourth valid species of Benthobatis, and only the second species from the vast Indo-Pacific region. Benthobatis is a continental slope, blind electric ray genus that remains poorly understood.
Document Type: Research Article
Publication date: May 1, 2003
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