List of threatened rays


are those vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's oldest global environmental organisation. It evaluates threatened species, and treats threatened species not as a single category, but as a group of three categories, depending on the degree to which they are threatened:
The term threatened strictly refers to these three categories, while vulnerable is used to refer to the least at risk of these categories. The terms can be used somewhat interchangeably, as all vulnerable species are threatened, all endangered species are vulnerable and threatened, and all critically endangered species are endangered, vulnerable and threatened. Threatened species are also referred to as a red-listed species, as they are listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Together rays and sharks make up the class of modern cartilaginous fishes. Modern fish are either cartilaginous or bony. Cartilaginous fishes have skeletons made of cartilage while bony fishes have skeletons made of bone. Because rays and sharks are closely related, they are often studied together. In 2010 a global IUCN study of vertebrates found that of 1,044 cartilaginous species examined, 345 or 33% were threatened with extinction.
There are four orders of rays: stingrays, skates, electric rays and sawfishes. Like sharks, rays are relatively long living and thrive in stable populations. They are K-strategists which grow slowly, mature late sexually and produce few offspring. They cannot recover as rapidly as many faster growing fish can if their populations are depleted. As with sharks, rays are increasingly becoming vulnerable because of commercial and recreational fishing pressures, the impact of non-ray fisheries on the seabed and ray prey species, and other habitat alterations such as damage and loss from coastal development and marine pollution. Most particularly, the continuing decline of threatened rays and sharks is the consequence of unregulated fishing.
are a family of rays which have a long rostrum resembling a saw. All species in the family are either endangered or critically endangered
Manta rays are largest rays in the world, with wingspans reaching 7 metres. They have one of the highest brain-to-body mass ratios of all fish. Manta populations suffer when they are caught as bycatch by fishermen fishing for other species, but fisheries which target manta rays are even more harmful. Manta rays use their gills to filter plankton from the sea. Demand for their dried gill rakers, cartilaginous structures protecting the gills, has been growing in traditional Chinese medicine practices. The market is "bogus" since dried manta gills have never been used historically in Chinese medicine, and there is no evidence that the gills have any medicinal value. The flesh is edible and is consumed in some countries, but is tough and unattractive compared to other fish. To fill the growing demand in Asia for gill rakers, targeted fisheries have developed in other parts of the world, including Sri Lanka, Indonesia, West Africa and Central and South America. Each year, thousands of manta rays, primarily the giant manta ray, are being caught and killed purely for their gill rakers. A fisheries study in Sri Lanka estimated that over a thousand of these were being sold in the country's fish markets each year.
In 2011, manta rays became strictly protected in international waters thanks to their recent inclusion in the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals. The CMS is an international treaty organization concerned with conserving migratory species and habitats on a global scale. Although individual nations were already protecting manta rays, the fish often migrate through unregulated waters, putting them at increased risk from overfishing. In 2013, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species listed both species of manta rays as CITES Appendix II species. This means that the international trade of manta rays will now be monitored and regulated.
Sawfish are a less well known family of rays which have a long rostrum resembling a saw. Some species can reach in length. All species of sawfish are either endangered or critically endangered as a result of habitat destruction and overfishing. Their young stay close to shore, and are particularly affected by coastal developments. Because their rostrum is easily entangled, sawfishes can easily become bycatch in fishing nets. They are also exploited for the novelty value of their rostrum, their fins are eaten as a delicacy in China, and their liver oil used as a food supplement. While arguing for a global ban on international commerce in 2007, a representative from the National Museums of Kenya stated, "Only the meat is consumed locally; and artisanal fishermen can retire after catching one sawfish due to the high value of a single rostrum, up to $1,450." In 2013 CITES uplisted the largetooth sawfish to Appendix I. This is CITES highest protection level, and means that all international trade of the species is banned.
OrderImageScientific nameCommon namePopulation trendIUCN statusFish
Base		FAOComment
StingrayAetobatus flagellumLongheaded eagle raydecreasing Endangered
StingrayAetomylaeus maculatusMottled eagle raydecreasing Endangered
StingrayAetomylaeus nichofiiBanded eagle raydecreasing Vulnerable
StingrayAetomylaeus vespertilioOrnate eagle raydecreasing Endangered
SkateAmblyraja radiataThorny skatedecreasing Vulnerable
SawfishAnoxypristis cuspidataKnifetooth sawfishdecreasing Endangered
StingrayAptychotrema timorensisSpotted shovelnose rayunknown Vulnerable
SkateAtlantoraja castelnauiSpotback skatedecreasing Endangered
SkateAtlantoraja cyclophoraEyespot skatedecreasing Vulnerable
SkateAtlantoraja platanaLa Plata skatedecreasing Vulnerable
SkateBathyraja griseocaudaGraytail skatedecreasing Endangered
Electric rayBenthobatis krefftiBrazilian blind electric rayunknown Vulnerable
StingrayDasyatis colarensisColares stingrayunknown Vulnerable
StingrayDasyatis fluviorumEstuary stingareedecreasing Vulnerable
StingrayDasyatis garouaensisSmooth freshwater stingraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayDasyatis laosensisMekong freshwater stingraydecreasing Endangeredfreshwater
StingrayDasyatis margaritaDaisy stingraydecreasing Endangered
StingrayDasyatis ukpamDaisy stingrayunknown Endangeredfreshwater
Electric rayDiplobatis colombiensisColombian electric rayunknown Vulnerable
Electric rayDiplobatis guamachensisBrownband numbfishunknown Vulnerable
Electric rayDiplobatis ommataOcellated electric rayunknown Vulnerable
Electric rayDiplobatis pictusVariegated electric rayunknown Vulnerable
SkateDipturus australisSydney skateunknown Vulnerable
SkateDipturus batisBlue skatedecreasing Critically endangered
SkateDipturus crosnieriMadagascar skateunknown Vulnerable
SkateDipturus laevisBarndoor skatestable Endangered
SkateDipturus menniiSouth Brazilian skateunknown Vulnerable
SkateDipturus trachydermusRoughskin skatedecreasing Vulnerable
SkateGlaucostegus granulatusSharpnose guitarfishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateGlaucostegus thouinClubnose guitarfishunknown Vulnerable
SkateGlaucostegus typusCommon shovelnose raydecreasing Vulnerable
SkateGurgesiella dorsaliferaOnefin skatedecreasing Vulnerable-
StingrayGymnura altavelaSpiny butterfly raydecreasing Vulnerable
StingrayGymnura zonuraZonetail butterfly raydecreasing Vulnerable
Electric rayHeteronarce garmaniNatal electric rayunknown Vulnerable
StingrayHimantura gerrardiWhitespotted whiprayunknown Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayHimantura chaophrayaGiant freshwater stingraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayHimantura hortleiHortle's whipraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayHimantura kittipongiRoughback whiprayunknown Endangeredfreshwater
StingrayHimantura leopardaLeopard whipraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayHimantura lobistomaTubemouth whipraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayHimantura oxyrhynchaLongnose marbled whiprayunknown Endangeredfreshwater
StingrayHimantura pastinacoidesRound whipraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayHimantura polylepisGiant freshwater stingraydecreasing Endangeredfreshwater
StingrayHimantura signiferWhite-edge freshwater whiprayunknown Endangeredfreshwater
StingrayHimantura uarnacoidesBleeker's whipraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayHimantura uarnakReticulate whipraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
StingrayHimantura undulataBleeker's variegated whipraydecreasing Vulnerablefreshwater
SkateLeucoraja circularisSandy rayunknown Vulnerable
SkateLeucoraja melitensisMaltese skatedecreasing Critically endangered
SkateLeucoraja ocellataWinter skatedecreasing Endangered
StingrayMyliobatis hamlyniPurple eagle raydecreasing Endangered
SkateMalacoraja sentaSmooth skatedecreasing Endangered
StingrayManta alfrediReef manta raydecreasing Vulnerable-
StingrayManta birostrisGiant manta raydecreasing Vulnerable
StingrayMobula mobularGiant devil raydecreasing Endangered
StingrayMobula rochebruneiLesser Guinean devil rayunknown Vulnerable
Electric rayNarcine bancroftiiCaribbean electric rayunknown Critically Endangered
Electric rayNarcine brevilabiataShortlip electric rayunknown Vulnerable
Electric rayNarke japonicaJapanese sleeper rayunknown Vulnerable
SkateOkamejei pitaPita skateunknown Critically endangered
StingrayPastinachus solocirostrisRoughnose stingrayunknown Endangered
StingrayPlatyrhina sinensisFanrayunknown Vulnerable
SawfishPristis clavataQueensland sawfishdecreasing Endangered
SawfishPristis pectinataSmalltooth sawfishdecreasing Critically endangered
SawfishPristis pristisCommon sawfishdecreasing Critically endangered
SawfishPristis zijsronNarrowsnout sawfishdecreasing Critically endangered
SkateRaja pulchraMottled skatedecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRaja undulataUndulate raydecreasing Endangered
SkateRhina ancylostomaBowmouth guitarfishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRhinobatos albomaculatusWhite-spotted guitarfishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRhinobatos cemiculusBlackchin guitarfishdecreasing Endangered
SkateRhinobatos formosensisTaiwan guitarfishunknown Vulnerable
SkateRhinobatos horkeliiBrazilian guitarfishdecreasing Critically endangered
SkateRhinobatos irvineiSpineback guitarfishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRhinobatos jimbaranensisJimbaran shovelnose raydecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRhinobatos obtususWidenose guitarfishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRhinobatos penggaliIndonesian shovelnose raydecreasing Vulnerable-
SkateRhinobatos rhinobatosCommon guitarfishdecreasing Endangered-
StingrayRhinoptera brasiliensisBrazilian cownose raydecreasing Endangered
StingrayRhinoptera javanicaJavanese cownose rayunknown Vulnerable
SkateRhinoraja albomaculataWhitedotted skateunknown Vulnerable
SkateRhynchobatus australiaeWhite-spotted guitarfishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRhynchobatus djiddensisGiant guitarfishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRhynchobatus laevisSmoothnose wedgefishunknown Vulnerable
SkateRhynchobatus luebbertiLubbert's guitarfishdecreasing Endangered
SkateRhynchobatus sp. nov. ARoughnose wedgefishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRhynchobatus springeriBroadnose wedgefishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateRioraja agassiziiRio skateunknown Vulnerable
SkateRostroraja albaBottlenose skatedecreasing Endangered
SkateSpiniraja whitleyiMelbourne skateunknown Vulnerable-
SkateSympterygia acutaBignose fanskatedecreasing Vulnerable
StingrayTaeniura meyeniRound ribbontail rayunknown Vulnerable
Electric rayTemera hardwickiiFinless sleeper rayunknown Vulnerable
SkateTrygonorrhina melaleucaMagpie fiddler rayunknown Endangered
StingrayUrogymnus asperrimusPorcupine rayunknown Vulnerable
StingrayUrogymnus ukpamPincushion rayunknown Endangered
StingrayUrolophus bucculentusSandyback stingareedecreasing Vulnerable
StingrayUrolophus javanicusJava stingareedecreasing Critically endangered
StingrayUrolophus orariusCoastal stingareeunknown Endangered
StingrayUrolophus sufflavusYellowback stingareedecreasing Vulnerable
StingrayUrolophus viridisGreenback stingareedecreasing Vulnerable
StingrayUrotrygon reticulataReticulate round stingrayunknown Vulnerable
StingrayUrotrygon simulatrixFake round rayunknown Vulnerable
SkateZapteryx brevirostrisShortnose guitarfishdecreasing Vulnerable
SkateZearaja chilensisYellownose skatedecreasing Vulnerable
SkateZearaja maugeanaMaugean skateunknown Endangered