Niger stingray
| Niger stingray | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Order: | Myliobatiformes |
| Family: | Dasyatidae |
| Genus: | Dasyatis |
| Species: | D. garouaensis |
| Binomial name | |
|
Dasyatis garouaensis (Stauch & Blanc, 1962) |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Potamotrygon garouaensis Stauch & Blanc, 1962 |
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Potamotrygon garouaensis Stauch & Blanc, 1962
The Niger stingray or smooth freshwater stingray, Dasyatis garouaensis, is a species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae, native to rivers in Nigeria and Cameroon. Attaining a width of 40 cm (16 in), this species can be distinguished by its thin, almost circular pectoral fin disk, slightly projecting snout tip, and mostly smooth skin with small or absent dermal denticles. The Niger stingray feeds on aquatic insect larvae and is ovoviviparous. The long stinging spine on the tail of this ray can inflict a painful wound. It has been assessed as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as its numbers are declining in some areas and it faces heavy fishing pressure and habitat degradation.
The original description of the Niger stingray was published by Alfred Stauch and M. Blanc in 1962, in the scientific journal Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle (Série 2). The specific epithet garouaensis refers to the city of Garoua, Cameroon, where the type specimen was caught. Stauch and Blanc assigned this species to Potamotrygon, which would have made it the only representative of the genus outside South America. In 1975, Thomas Thorson and Donald Watson examined new specimens and concluded, on morphological and physiological grounds, that this species is a member of Dasyatis.
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