Trisha Shetty (Editor)

Giant guitarfish

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Kingdom
  
Animalia

Family
  
Rhynchobatidae

Scientific name
  
Rhynchobatus djiddensis

Higher classification
  
Rhynchobatus

Order
  
Rajiformes

Subclass
  
Elasmobranchii

Genus
  
Rhynchobatus

Phylum
  
Chordata

Rank
  
Species

Found in
  
Red Sea

Giant guitarfish Giant guitarfish videos photos and facts Rhynchobatus djiddensis

Similar
  
Rhynchobatus, Guitarfish, Rhinobatos, Bowmouth guitarfish, Rhina

Giant guitarfish eye gymnastics


The giant guitarfish (Rhynchobatus djiddensis) is a species of guitarfish in the family Rhynchobatidae.

Contents

Fish the sea giant guitarfish sandshark caught at kosi bay south africa


Taxonomy and range

Giant guitarfish Giant guitarfish photos Rhynchobatus djiddensis ARKive

The giant guitarfish was previously believed to range throughout a large part of the Indo-Pacific, but recent evidence has shown that it, as traditionally defined, actually was a species complex consisting of 4 different species. In addition to the giant guitarfish, this complex includes the white-spotted guitarfish, the broadnose wedgefish and possibly the smoothnose wedgefish. With these as separate species, the giant guitarfish has a relatively restricted range: It is found only in the Red Sea and the tropical western Indian Ocean as far south as South Africa.

Description

Giant guitarfish Giant guitarfish photos Rhynchobatus djiddensis ARKive

A large fish reaching up to 3.1m long and weighing as much as 227 kg. The colour underneath is white and overall dark greyish or olive above. Large individuals lack the distinct white spots of the closely related white-spotted guitarfish (though some white-spotted guitarfish are essentially unspotted too). It is ovoviviparous, and a female can give birth to litters of up to 10 young.

Diet

The giant guitarfish feeds on bivalves, crabs, lobsters, squid and small fish.

Habitat

Giant guitarfish Giant guitarfish photos Rhynchobatus djiddensis ARKive

It is a shy fish, found from 2m to 50m depth, inhabiting areas with sandy sea floor. These are generally around coastal reefs or reef flats, but they will sometimes venture into the brackish waters of estuaries.

Interaction with man

Giant guitarfish httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

The giant guitarfish is harmless to humans. It is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN red list as its population are believed to have declined significantly due to unregulated high levels of exploitation for its flesh and fins; the latter for shark fin soup. Its low fecundity and presumed slow growth rate make it highly vulnerable to unsustainable exploitation.

References

Giant guitarfish Wikipedia