Shorefishes of the Greater Caribbean online information system

Español  Contact

Species: Narcine bancroftii, Bancroft's Numbfish, Lesser Electric Ray

All Families:   All Genera:   All Species:

large eyes
disc elongate, front strongly convex
nostril with 1 opening
dark bar on snout, dark ocelli on disc & tail
mouth tubular
teeth exposed on lips of closed mouth
C triangular, Ds pointed

Narcine bancroftii (Griffith & Smith, 1834)

Lesser Electric Ray, Bancroft's Numbfish

Elongate oval disc, front strongly convex, soft, flaccid edges; well-developed electrical organs visible as kidney-shaped mounds on either side of the head; nostrils with only one opening; eyes normally developed, not covered by skin; mouth small, tubular, protractile; central teeth extending onto lips and exposed when mouth is closed; 2 large, similar sized, pointed dorsal fins; outer part of inner edge of pelvic fins not joined to side of tail; thick tail, membranous fold between center of 1st dorsal base & origin of tail fin; tail fin well developed, triangular, upper and lower lobes continuous around the tip.

Upper surface yellowish-brown to dark brown; an irregular dark crossbar on snout just before eyes; dark spots forming indistinct ocelli over disc and base of tail; tail with dark crossbars at bases of dorsal and tail fins.

Reaches 65 cm.

Live on sandy bottoms.

Depth range: 0-189 m.

From North Carolina to the southern Caribbean.


High Resolution Map Download

Species Data Create Report Export as Word File Export as Excel File
Salinity
  • Marine
  • Marine Only
Inshore/Offshore
  • Inshore
  • Inshore Only
Water Column Position
  • Bottom
  • Bottom only
Habitat
  • Sand & gravel
  • Soft bottom only
  • Mud
  • Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
FishBase Habitat
  • Demersal
  • Reef Associated
Feeding Group
  • Carnivore
  • Data
Diet
  • Data
  • Bony fishes
  • Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
  • Mobile benthic worms
Egg Type
  • Data
  • Live birth
  • No pelagic larva
  • No pelagic phase
Global Endemism
  • All species
  • Greater Caribbean endemic
  • West Atlantic Endemic
Regional Endemism
  • Continent
  • Continent + Island (s)
  • Extends North of GC
  • GC endemic
  • Island (s)
  • All species
Residency
  • Resident
Climate Zone
  • Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
  • Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
  • Temperate (>35N)
  • Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
IUCN Red List
  • Least concern
  • Listed
CITES
  • Not listed
Length Max
  • 65
Depth Range Min
  • 0
Depth Range Max
  • 189