Shorefishes of the Greater Caribbean online information system

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Species: Benthobatis marcida, Caribbean Blind Numbfish, Deepsea Electric Ray, Pale Blind Ray

All Families:   All Genera:   All Species:

disc elongate, front convex
eyes ~absent
snout long
2 similar, rounded Ds
pelvics: all inner edge attached to C base
C oval, top lobe larger

Benthobatis marcida Bean & Weed, 1909

Deepsea Electric Ray, Caribbean Blind Numbfish, Pale Blind Ray

Disc oval, length 1.05-1.2X breadth, front convex, soft, with flaccid edges; snout long, before eyes 13.6% of TL; well-developed electrical organs visible as kidney-shaped mounds on either side of the head; nostrils with only one opening; eyes minute, almost entirely concealed by skin, usually not visible (or visible as dark dots in some large fish), separated from spiracles by distance equal to width of spiracle; spiracles small (2.1% TL), with transverse openings; mouth with thick, wrinkled lips, transverse, tubular, narrow, protractile; central top teeth extending onto lips and exposed when mouth is closed; 2 large dorsal fins, with similar size and shape, straight front edges, rounded tips and rear edges; pelvics thick & fleshy, inner edges entirely joined to side of tail; tail thick, with low fleshy ridge on each side from origin of 1st dorsal to origin of tail fin, length =/~20% longer than body length; tail fin well developed, oval, upper and lower lobes continuous around the tip, top lobe larger.

Pale pinkish grey to yellowish brown, may have a few small white spots, edges of disc and fins paler; lower surface white to cream.

Reaches 50 cm.

On sandy and muddy bottoms, around deep reefs.

Depth range 227-923 m.

South Carolina to Cuba.


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Salinity
  • Marine
  • Marine Only
Inshore/Offshore
  • Offshore
  • Offshore Only
Water Column Position
  • Bottom
  • Bottom only
Habitat
  • Sand & gravel
  • Soft bottom only
  • Mud
  • Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
FishBase Habitat
  • Bathydemersal
Feeding Group
  • Carnivore
  • Data
Diet
  • Data
  • 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)
  • Continental primarily
  • GC endemic
  • Island (s)
  • All species
Residency
  • Resident
Climate Zone
  • Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
IUCN Red List
  • Least concern
  • Listed
CITES
  • Not listed
Length Max
  • 50
Depth Range Min
  • 227
Depth Range Max
  • 923