About
Little is known about the ecology of the mottled eagle ray such as its reproductive biology, maximum age and growth rate, which is essential to conserve the species.
The mottled eagle ray, as its name suggests, has white spots on the posterior half of the brownish-green dorsal part of their body. Compared to other species in the genus, this eagle ray is considered medium size and inhabits inshore sandy areas.
This species is particularly susceptible to bycatch within demersal trawl and gillnet fisheries which operate intensively within much of its range. Caught individuals are frequently landed and sold as medium to low value fish at fish markets in countries such as Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. As a result, the mottled eagle ray seems to have experienced local extinction in some parts of Thailand where it was once common.
According to the IUCN Red List of threatened species, there are currently no conservation actions in place, and as such, developing a management plans has been put forward by experts as a priority for protecting this species in the future.
- Order: Myliobatiformes
- Family: Myliobatidae
- Population: Unknown
- Trend: decreasing
- Size: Up to 100cm (?)
- Depth Range (m): 1-60m
EDGE Score
Distribution
This species has a patchy distribution across the Eastern Indian Ocean and Western-Central Pacific. Recently, records of the species have come from shrimp trawling fisheries in the Persian Gulf, Oman where they have been caught as bycatch.
Habitat and Ecology
The mottled eagle ray is found on the inner continental shelf over sandy coastal habitats. Although little is known about the ecology of this species it is thought that it feeds on molluscs, crustaceans and other benthonic invertebrates.
Local site fidelity, as well as local and regional movements are unknown.