Michael Eisenbart
Info
Zapteryx exasperata appears to be a benthic ray endemic to the Gulf of California and the Mexican portion, Baja California.
The ray has irregular spotting and dark transverse stripes; its belly shows spots and dots.
The ray has a slender body, head and adjacent pectoral fins forming a distinctly broad triangular structure.
The head, on the other hand, is relatively broad, the snout is short, relatively blunt, with two ridges running forward from the inner edges of the eyes.
Behind each eye is a large spine, and a series of thorny projections runs along the midline of the back from behind the eyes to the origin of the first dorsal fin.
The ray has two large, triangular dorsal fins of equal size, and its caudal fin is asymmetrical with no distinct lower lobes.
The banded guitarfish inhabits rocky reefs, shallow sandy lagoons, and nearshore waters from the intertidal zone to 200 m depth, but mostly at depths between 2.5 and 10 m (Feder et al. 1974, Villavicencio-Garayzar 1995, de la Cruz-Aguero et al. 1997, Ebert 2003). Based on fisheries landings data, this species appears to make seasonal migrations from nearshore areas in spring and summer to deeper habitats in fall and winter
Zapteryx exasperata is a lecithotrophic, viviparous species with an annual litter size of 2 to 13 juveniles
Synonyms:
Platyrhina exasperata Jordan & Gilbert, 1880
Trigonorhina alveata Garman, 1880
The ray has irregular spotting and dark transverse stripes; its belly shows spots and dots.
The ray has a slender body, head and adjacent pectoral fins forming a distinctly broad triangular structure.
The head, on the other hand, is relatively broad, the snout is short, relatively blunt, with two ridges running forward from the inner edges of the eyes.
Behind each eye is a large spine, and a series of thorny projections runs along the midline of the back from behind the eyes to the origin of the first dorsal fin.
The ray has two large, triangular dorsal fins of equal size, and its caudal fin is asymmetrical with no distinct lower lobes.
The banded guitarfish inhabits rocky reefs, shallow sandy lagoons, and nearshore waters from the intertidal zone to 200 m depth, but mostly at depths between 2.5 and 10 m (Feder et al. 1974, Villavicencio-Garayzar 1995, de la Cruz-Aguero et al. 1997, Ebert 2003). Based on fisheries landings data, this species appears to make seasonal migrations from nearshore areas in spring and summer to deeper habitats in fall and winter
Zapteryx exasperata is a lecithotrophic, viviparous species with an annual litter size of 2 to 13 juveniles
Synonyms:
Platyrhina exasperata Jordan & Gilbert, 1880
Trigonorhina alveata Garman, 1880
