Dasyatis pastinaca

The common stingray (Dasyatis pastinaca) is a species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae, found in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean and Black Seas. It typically inhabits sandy or muddy habitats in coastal waters shallower than 60 m (200 ft), often burying itself in sediment. Usually measuring 45 cm (18 in) across, the common stingray has a diamond-shaped pectoral fin disc slightly wider than long, and a whip-like tail with upper and lower fin folds. It can be identified by its plain coloration and mostly smooth skin, except for a row of tubercles along the midline of the back in the largest individuals. The predominant prey of the common stingray are bottom-dwelling crustaceans, though it also takes molluscs, polychaete worms, and small bony fishes. It is aplacental viviparous: the embryos are nourished by yolk and later histotroph ('uterine milk') produced by the mother. Females bear 4–9 young twice per year in shallow water, after a gestation period of four months. The common stingray can inflict a painful, though rarely life-threatening, wound with its venomous tail spine. During classical antiquity, its sting was ascribed many mythical properties. This species is not sought after by commercial fisheries, but is taken in large numbers as bycatch and utilized for food, fishmeal, and liver oil. Its population is apparently dwindling across its range, though there is not yet sufficient data for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to assess it beyond Data Deficient. Well-documented since classical antiquity, the common stingray was known as trygon (τρυγών) to the ancient Greeks and as pastinaca to the ancient Romans. An old common name for this species, used in Great Britain since at least the 18th century, is 'fire-flare' or 'fiery-flare', which may refer to the reddish color of its meat. The first formal scientific description of the common stingray, as Raja pastinaca, was authored by the father of taxonomy Carl Linnaeus in the 1758 tenth edition of Systema Naturae. It has since been placed in the genus Dasyatis. There are at least 25 earlier references to this ray in literature, under various non-binomial names such as Raja corpore glabro, aculeo longo anterius serrato in cauda apterygia, Pastinaca marina prima, and Pastinaca marina lævis. Many of these early accounts, including Linnaeus', also incorporated information from other species. Consequently, the designation of a lectotype is warranted in the interests of taxonomic stability, but this has yet to be enacted. The blue stingray (Dasyatis chrysonota) of southern Africa has long been regarded as a variant of the common stingray. However, the common stingray lacks the blue markings of the other species and differs in morphological and meristic characters, which led the latter to be definitively recognized as a separate species by Paul Cowley and Leonard Compagno in 1993. The distinction between this species and the similar Tortonese's stingray (D. tortonesei) of the Mediterranean is poorly understood and may not be valid, requiring further investigation. In 2001, Lisa Rosenberger published a phylogenetic analysis of 14 Dasyatis species, based on morphology. The common stingray was reported to be the most basal member of the genus, other than the bluespotted stingray (D. kuhlii) and pelagic stingray (D. violacea). However, D. violacea has generally been recognized as belonging to its own genus Pteroplatytrygon, and recently D. kuhlii has also been placed in a different genus, Neotrygon. The common stingray is found throughout the Mediterranean and Black Seas. It also occurs, though in significantly lower numbers, in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean from southern Norway and the western Baltic Sea to Madeira and the Canary Islands. This bottom-dwelling species can be found from the shore to a depth of 200 m (660 ft), though it is not usually found deeper than 60 m (200 ft). It favors sandy or muddy bottoms in calm water, and is also sometimes encountered near rocky reefs or in estuaries, as it is tolerant of low salinity. Off the Azores, common stingrays are most abundant in summer and least abundant in winter, suggestive of a seasonal shift in range and/or depth as has been documented in other ray species. The common stingray has been reported to reach a width of 1.4 m (4.6 ft) and a length of 2.5 m (8.2 ft), though a width of 45 cm (18 in) is more typical. The flattened pectoral fin disc is diamond-shaped and slightly wider than it is long, with narrowly rounded outer corners. The leading margins of the disc are almost straight and converge on a pointed, slightly protruding snout; the trailing margins of the disc are convex. The eyes are smaller than the spiracles (paired respiratory openings), which are placed closely behind. There are 28–38 upper tooth rows and 28–43 lower tooth rows; the teeth are small and blunt, and arranged into flattened surfaces. There are five papillae (nipple-like structures) across the floor of the mouth.