We all know that the ocean holds many cryptical creatures , fromincredible whalesto sponge that can live for11,000 twelvemonth . One such specie merit some more realisation : it ’s time to fulfil the bowmouth guitarfish .
What Is A Bowmouth Guitarfish?
Bowmouth guitarfish ( Rhina ancylostoma ) have a dramatic strange appearance : though they seem to have the tail of a shark , their body is flattened like a ray . So which is it ? Well , the bowmouth guitarfish has gills on the undersurface , a stagnant giveaway that this is a species of irradiation , though it is often hollo ashark ray .
Their head are covered in bony , pointed growths called " thorns " . Some researchers think that the thorns are used tohead - buttpotential attackers , though this has not been proven . Mature adults can spring up up to a utmost of 3 meters in length ( 9.8 feet ) . Unsurprisingly they are diagnose guitarfish due to their quintuplet that roughly resemble the pattern of a guitar .
What Do Bowmouth Guitarfish Eat?
Bowmouth guitarfish eat crustacean and mollusk on the sea floor . They have wrangle of flat ridge teeth tocrushtheir shell . The eye of the bowmouth guitarfish are on top of its head , the elementary sense they use for hunt is smell .
Where Do Bowmouth Guitarfish Live?
Bowmouth guitarfish have a wide range in the Indo - West Pacific , stretching from the sea-coast of South Africa all the way to Japan , Papua New Guinea , and New South Wales in Australia . They opt to endure very close to the Davy Jones’s locker over muddy or sandy areas and can also be come up on coral Witwatersrand .
What Are The Threats To Bowmouth Guitarfish?
accord to theIUCN , bowmouth guitarfish areCritically Endangered . Like many sharks and shaft of light , these guitarfish are targeted for their fins for use in food , and are often also caught as bycatch .
Their thorn are also prize for habit injewelry . A discipline from2023explored the impact of the little - eff “ thorn - market ” where the thorns are removed and made into amulet and rings , primarily in Thailand .
The home ground of the bowmouth guitarfish is also under threat due to the declining status of the coral and the use of explosives in fishing .
The thorny ridges are prized for jewelry in regions such as Thailand, contributing to the declining population.Image Credit: Rich Carey
