Brown stingaree

A member of the round rays family, Urolophidae, you could be forgiven for not knowing about this West Australian endemic animal. The brown stingaree, Urolophus westraliensis, occurs on the continental shelf and shelf edge off northwest Australia down to 210 metres deep (60-210 m is its range). No good picture exists of them.

We know virtually nothing about it! Total length (TL) seems to be about 36 cm when they are adults, being born at around 10 cm; they are likely to have low fecundity and only give birth to one or two pups at a time. 

The Brown Stingaree is listed by the IUCN as “Least Concern” (LC) due to how little fishing pressure it is under in its range.

WHAT DID YOU LEARN ABOUT THIS ANIMAL?

GLOSSARY

• Continental shelf: Extends from a continent underwater, resulting in a shallow-water area.
• Continental slope: The steep slope from a continental shelf to the ocean floor; usually around 20 km (12.4 miles) wide and made up of mud and silt substrate. It is an ideal area for deep sea fishing.​
• IUCN: International Union for Conservation of Nature.

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