| Short-tailed river stingray | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Order: | Myliobatiformes |
| Family: | Potamotrygonidae |
| Genus: | Potamotrygon |
| Species: | P. brachyura |
| Binomial name | |
| Potamotrygon brachyura (Albert Günther, 1880) |
|
The Short-tailed river stingray (Potamotrygon brachyura) is a species of river stingray (Potamotrygonidae) native to South America; they are known to inhabit Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina basins. Growing to a size of 4.9 feet (1.5 meters) and a weight of 459 pounds (208 kilograms), they are hunted as food and for aquariums[1][2].
Contents |
Short-tailed river stingrays are circular in shape and humped in the back[3]. The biggest recorded specimen was a 661 pounds (300 kilograms) ray[4][2], which makes them the largest of the Potamotrygon species[2]. They have a dark pattern on their backs, probably used as camouflage[3]. The ray's tail is very muscular and thick, covered with short spines at the base and a venomous sting at the end[5].
They are mainly distributed throughout the Paraná-Paraguay River (including Cuiabá river in Brazil), Uruguay basins and Argentina[6].
Female stingrays give birth to up to 19 fully formed young stingrays at one time[2]. The pups will start off eating plankton and then move on to consume small mollusks, crustaceans, the larvae of aquatic insects and fish[2].