Genus: Hypanus, Fintail Stingray, Fintail Stingrays

HYPANUS

FINTAIL STINGRAYS

Small to large rays; disc flattened, rhomboidal, width < / = 1.3X length; pectorals continuous with head; disc outer corners angular to rounded; eyes and spiracles on top of head, mouth and gill openings underneath; floor of mouth with 3-5 fleshy papillae; jaws with small blunt or pointed teeth in many series, forming bands; nostrils with a large fringed curtain between them and the mouth; no dorsal fins or tail fin; disc thorns in prominent row on nape & 1 or more on shoulder in adults, thorn row may continue to tail sting; tail not broad based and depressed, without large tubercles, with one or more large, serrate, venomous spines on its upper surface; fold of skin along underside of tail narrow, length variable; pelvic fins relatively large, projecting slightly to well behind disc; bottom uniform white or with blackish rear edges.

An Atlantic and east Pacific genus with 8 species; 4 in the Greater Caribbean, 2 in the E Pacific.