Purple Eagle Ray (Myliobatis hamlyni) is… well, as the name says: purple. But, it can also be a green-grey colour, which mixes into an olive brown on its disc edges. Their underbelly is a creamy colour, while their tail varies from a creamy white to a purple colour. Like other rays, they do have a venomous stinger. These rays have a broad head with large eyes to help them find their prey. Diet is unknown for these animals, but they are closely related to southern eagle ray (Myliobatis tenuicaudatus) so they may possibly share the same taste in prey. Behind their large eyes are large spiracles. Adult males have a small, blunt thorn over each eye. A decently sized animal, they can reach up to 59 cm disc with a total length about 100 cm. Their distribution is very poorly known, with only a few specimens being observed around Queensland, New South Wales, and Western Australia all the way up to Japan and Taiwan. They tend to hang out around 120-350 m deep, a unique feature amongst the Myliobatis species; purple eagle rays may also be possibly distributed in Indo-Pacific to South Africa. Their reproduction methods are unknown, but being closely related to the southern eagle ray, it may be same or similar. The IUCN has assessed them as Near Threatened (NT). ever heard of this ray?glossary
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AuthorTFUI Founder Melissa C. Marquez is author of all animal bios and "Behind the Fins" segments. SEE MELISSA'S TEDx TALK HERE:
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