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The guitarfish are a family, Rhinobatidae, of rays
Batoidea

Batoidea is a superorder of Chondrichthyes containing more than 500 described species in thirteen families. They are commonly known as rays, but that term is also used specifically for batoids in the order Rajiformes, the "true rays"....
. The guitarfish are known for an elongated body with a flattened head and trunk and small ray like wings. The combined range of the various species is tropical, subtropical and temperate waters worldwide. They often travel in large schools
Swarm

The term swarm is applied to fish, insects, birds and microorganisms, such as bacteria, and describes a behavior of an aggregation of animals of similar size and body orientation, generally cruising in the same direction....
.

Description
Most adult guitarfish reach five or six feet in length, but the Indo-Pacific Rhynchobatus djiddensis can weigh and grow to in length.






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The guitarfish are a family, Rhinobatidae, of rays
Batoidea

Batoidea is a superorder of Chondrichthyes containing more than 500 described species in thirteen families. They are commonly known as rays, but that term is also used specifically for batoids in the order Rajiformes, the "true rays"....
. The guitarfish are known for an elongated body with a flattened head and trunk and small ray like wings. The combined range of the various species is tropical, subtropical and temperate waters worldwide. They often travel in large schools
Swarm

The term swarm is applied to fish, insects, birds and microorganisms, such as bacteria, and describes a behavior of an aggregation of animals of similar size and body orientation, generally cruising in the same direction....
.

Description


Most adult guitarfish reach five or six feet in length, but the Indo-Pacific Rhynchobatus djiddensis can weigh and grow to in length. These fish are bottom feeders, preferring small crustacean
Crustacean

Crustaceans are a large group of arthropods, comprising almost 52,000 described species , and are usually treated as a subphylum . They include various familiar animals, such as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles....
s. Their teeth are small and numerous, usually arranged in 65 or 70 rows. Guitarfish are ovoviviparous, with the young hatching out of the eggs before leaving the mother's body.

Guitarfishes have a body form intermediate between those of sharks and rays. The tail has a typical ray-like form, but in many species the head has a triangular, or shovel-like shape, rather than the disc-shape formed by fusion with the pectoral fin found in other rays.

Notable species include the Shovelnose guitarfish
Shovelnose guitarfish

The shovelnose guitarfish, Rhinobatos productus, is a batoidea that ranges from central California down to the Sea of Cortez. This species has had one documented case of an attack on a diver when a male guitarfish was interrupted during mating....
, Rhinobatos productus, and the Bowmouth guitarfish
Bowmouth guitarfish

The bowmouth guitarfish, bowmouth wedgefish, or shark ray is a member of the order of Rajiformes, being related to skates and rays....
, Rhina ancylostoma.

Classification

The taxonomy of this group is highly uncertain. Some taxonomists put Rhinobatidae in its own order, Rhinobatiformes; others place it in the order Myliobatiformes
Myliobatiformes

Myliobatiformes Compagno, 1973 is a proposed order of batoidea. It is a sister group to Rajiformes, the true rays, and contains the following families:...
 with the eagle ray
Eagle ray

Eagle rays are a family of mostly large batoidea living in the open ocean rather than at the bottom of the sea.The taxonomy of this group is uncertain; it is placed either in the order Myliobatiformes or Rajiformes....
s and their relatives.

In some classifications the family is split into three, with the genus Rhina
Rhina

Rhina may refer to:* Bowmouth guitarfish, Rhina ancylostoma* Rhina, Hesse, a village in Germany...
 in the family Rhinidae, and the genus Rhynchobatus
Rhynchobatus

Rhynchobatus is a genus of fish in the Rhynchobatidae family.It contains the following species:* White-spotted guitarfish * Giant guitarfish ...
 in the family Rhynochobatidae (or these two genera may be classified together). These families may be raised to the level of orders: Rhiniformes and Rhynchobatiformes, respectively.

This article follows FishBase
FishBase

FishBase is a comprehensive database of information about fish. , it included descriptions of over 30,000 species, over 260,000 common names in hundreds of languages, over 46,000 pictures, and references to more than 42,000 works in the scientific literature....
 in including about fifty species in ten genera:
  • Genus Aptychotrema
    Aptychotrema

    Aptychotrema is a genus of fish in the Rhinobatidae family.It contains the following species:* spotted shovelnose ray * southern shovelnose ray ...
    • Short-snouted shovelnose ray, Aptychotrema bougainvillii (Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841)
    • East Australian shovelnose ray, Aptychotrema rostrata (Shaw, 1794)
    • Western shovelnose ray, Aptychotrema vincentiana (Haacke, 1885)
  • Genus Platyrhina
    Platyrhina

    Platyrhina is a genus of guitarfish, family Rhinobatidae, with two species. Along with the thornback guitarfish, they are sometimes placed in their own family, Platyrhinidae....
    • Amoy fanray, Platyrhina limboonkengi Tang, 1933
    • Fanray, Platyrhina sinensis (Bloch
      Marcus Elieser Bloch

      Marcus Elieser Bloch was a Germany medical doctor and naturalist. He is generally considered one of the most important ichthyologys of the 18th century....
       & Schneider
      Johann Gottlob Schneider

      Johann Gottlob Theaenus Schneider was a German Empire classicist and natural history.Schneider was born at Koilmen in Saxony. In 1774, on the recommendation of Christian Gottlob Heine, he became secretary to the famous Strasbourg scholar Richard Fran?ois Brunck, and in 1811 became professor of ancient languages and eloquence at Breslau...
      , 1801)
  • Genus Platyrhinoidis
    • Thornback guitarfish, Platyrhinoidis triseriata (Jordan
      David Starr Jordan

      David Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. was a leading eugenics, ichthyologist , educator and peace activist. He was president of Indiana University and Stanford University....
       & Gilbert, 1880)
  • Genus Rhina
    Rhina

    Rhina may refer to:* Bowmouth guitarfish, Rhina ancylostoma* Rhina, Hesse, a village in Germany...
    • Bowmouth guitarfish
      Bowmouth guitarfish

      The bowmouth guitarfish, bowmouth wedgefish, or shark ray is a member of the order of Rajiformes, being related to skates and rays....
      , Rhina ancylostoma Bloch
      Marcus Elieser Bloch

      Marcus Elieser Bloch was a Germany medical doctor and naturalist. He is generally considered one of the most important ichthyologys of the 18th century....
       & Schneider
      Johann Gottlob Schneider

      Johann Gottlob Theaenus Schneider was a German Empire classicist and natural history.Schneider was born at Koilmen in Saxony. In 1774, on the recommendation of Christian Gottlob Heine, he became secretary to the famous Strasbourg scholar Richard Fran?ois Brunck, and in 1811 became professor of ancient languages and eloquence at Breslau...
      , 1801
  • Genus Rhinobatos
    Rhinobatos

    Rhinobatos is a genus of fish in the Rhinobatidae family.It contains the following species:* lesser guitarfish * bluntnose guitarfish * blackchin guitarfish ...
    • White-spotted guitarfish
      White-spotted guitarfish

      White-spotted guitarfish is a type of rajiformes. It has many variations, which may lead to it being divided further. They reach around three meters and are grey with white spots....
      , Rhinobatos albomaculatus Norman, 1930** Annandale's guitarfish, Rhinobatos annandalei Norman, 1926
    • Lesser sandshark, Rhinobatos annulatus Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841
    • Bluntnose guitarfish
      Bluntnose guitarfish

      The bluntnose guitarfish or fiddlefish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family. It is found in Namibia and South Africa. Its natural habitats are shallow seas and estuarine waters....
      , Rhinobatos blochii Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841
    • Blackchin guitarfish, Rhinobatos cemiculus Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817
    • Taiwan guitarfish
      Taiwan guitarfish

      The Taiwan guitarfish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family. It is found in Taiwan and possibly the Philippines. Its natural habitats are open seas, shallow seas, coral reefs, and estuarine waters....
      , Rhinobatos formosensis Norman, 1926
    • Speckled guitarfish, Rhinobatos glaucostigma Jordan
      David Starr Jordan

      David Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. was a leading eugenics, ichthyologist , educator and peace activist. He was president of Indiana University and Stanford University....
       & Gilbert, 1883
    • Sharpnose guitarfish
      Sharpnose guitarfish

      The sharpnose guitarfish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family.It is found in Australia, India, Indonesia, Kuwait, Myanmar, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, possibly China, and possibly Oman....
      , Rhinobatos granulatus Cuvier
      Georges Cuvier

      Baron Georges L?opold Chr?tien Fr?d?ric Dagobert Cuvier was a France natural history and zoology. He was the elder brother of Fr?d?ric Cuvier , also a naturalist....
      , 1829
    • Halavi's guitarfish, Rhinobatos halavi (Forsskċl
      Peter Forsskċl

      Peter Forssk?l, sometimes spelled Pehr Forssk?l, Peter Forskaol, Petrus Forsk?l or Pehr Forssk?hl, was a Sweden exploration, orientalist and natural history....
      , 1775)
    • Slender guitarfish, Rhinobatos holcorhynchus Norman, 1922
    • Brazilian guitarfish
      Brazilian guitarfish

      The Brazilian guitarfish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family. It is Endemism to Brazil. Category:Fauna of Brazil Its natural habitat is estuarine waters....
      , Rhinobatos horkelii Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841
    • Angel fish, Rhinobatos hynnicephalus Richardson
      John Richardson (naturalist)

      Sir John Richardson was a Scotland Royal Navy surgery, natural history and arctic explorer.Richardson was born at Dumfries. He studied medicine at Edinburgh, and became a surgeon in the navy in 1807....
      , 1846
    • Spineback guitarfish, Rhinobatos irvinei Norman, 1931
    • Rhinobatos jimbaranensis Last, White & Fahmi, 2006
    • Atlantic guitarfish, Rhinobatos lentiginosus Garman
      Samuel Garman

      Samuel Walton Garman was a natural history/ zoologist from Pennsylvania. He studied under Louis Agassiz. In 1868 he joined an expedition to the American West with John Wesley Powell....
      , 1880
    • Whitesnout guitarfish, Rhinobatos leucorhynchus (Günther, 1867)
    • Grayspottted guitarfish, Rhinobatos leucospilus Norman, 1926
    • Smoothback guitarfish, Rhinobatos lionotus Norman, 1926
    • Smalleyed guitarfish, Rhinobatos microphthalmus Teng, 1959
    • Rhinobatos nudidorsalis Last, Compagno & Nakaya, 2004
    • Widenose guitarfish
      Widenose guitarfish

      The widenose guitarfish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family. It is found in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Thailand....
      , Rhinobatos obtusus Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841
    • Rhinobatos ocellatus Norman, 1926
    • Rhinobatos penggali Last, White & Fahmi, 2006
    • Chola guitarfish, Rhinobatos percellens (Walbaum
      Johann Julius Walbaum

      Johann Julius Walbaum , a native of L?beck, Germany was a physician, natural history and taxonomist. He was the first to describe many previously unknown species from remote parts of the globe, such as the Barracuda , the Chum salmon from the Kamchatka River in Siberia, and the curimat?-pac? from the S?o Francisco River in Brazil....
      , 1792)
    • Madagascar guitarfish, Rhinobatos petiti Chabanaud, 1929
    • Pacific guitarfish, Rhinobatos planiceps Garman
      Samuel Garman

      Samuel Walton Garman was a natural history/ zoologist from Pennsylvania. He studied under Louis Agassiz. In 1868 he joined an expedition to the American West with John Wesley Powell....
      , 1880
    • Gorgona guitarfish, Rhinobatos prahli Acero P. & Franke, 1995
    • Shovelnose guitarfish
      Shovelnose guitarfish

      The shovelnose guitarfish, Rhinobatos productus, is a batoidea that ranges from central California down to the Sea of Cortez. This species has had one documented case of an attack on a diver when a male guitarfish was interrupted during mating....
      , Rhinobatos productus (Ayres
      William Orville Ayres

      William Orville Ayres was an United States physician and ichthyologist. Born in Connecticut, he studied to become a Physician at Yale University School of Medicine....
      , 1854)
    • Spotted guitarfish, Rhinobatos punctifer Compagno & Randall, 1987
    • Common guitarfish, Rhinobatos rhinobatos (Linnaeus
      Carolus Linnaeus

      Carl Linnaeus was a Sweden botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern alpha taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology....
      , 1758)
    • Salalah guitarfish
      Salalah guitarfish

      The salalah guitarfish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family. It is Endemism to possibly Oman. Its natural habitat is open seas....
      , Rhinobatos salalah Randall & Compagno, 1995
    • Yellow guitarfish, Rhinobatos schlegelii Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841
    • Spiny guitarfish, Rhinobatos spinosus Günther, 1870
    • Clubnose guitarfish
      Clubnose guitarfish

      The clubnose guitarfish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family. It is found in Bangladesh, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, Yemen, an...
      , Rhinobatos thouin (Anonymous, 1798)
    • Giant shovelnose ray, Rhinobatos typus Anonymous [Bennett], 1830
    • Stripenose guitarfish, Rhinobatos variegatus Nair & Lal Mohan, 1973
    • Zanzibar guitarfish
      Zanzibar guitarfish

      The Zanzibar guitarfish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family. It is Endemism to Tanzania. Category:Fauna of Tanzania Its natural habitats are open seas and shallow seas....
      , Rhinobatos zanzibarensis Norman, 1926
  • Genus Rhynchobatus
    Rhynchobatus

    Rhynchobatus is a genus of fish in the Rhynchobatidae family.It contains the following species:* White-spotted guitarfish * Giant guitarfish ...
    • White-spotted wedgefish, Rhynchobatus australiae
      Rhynchobatus australiae

      The white-spotted guitarfish or white-spotted wedgefish is a species of fish in the Rhynchobatidae family. It is found in Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand....
       Whitley, 1939
    • Giant guitarfish
      Giant guitarfish

      The giant guitarfish, also known as the whitespotted guitarfish, is of the order of Rajiformes, being related to skates and rays....
      , Rhynchobatus djiddensis (Forsskċl
      Peter Forsskċl

      Peter Forssk?l, sometimes spelled Pehr Forssk?l, Peter Forskaol, Petrus Forsk?l or Pehr Forssk?hl, was a Sweden exploration, orientalist and natural history....
      , 1775)
    • Smoothnose wedgefish
      Smoothnose wedgefish

      The smoothnose wedgefish is a species of fish in the Rhynchobatidae family. It is found in Australia, Bangladesh, China, India, Japan, Oman, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Tanzania....
      , Rhynchobatus laevis (Bloch
      Marcus Elieser Bloch

      Marcus Elieser Bloch was a Germany medical doctor and naturalist. He is generally considered one of the most important ichthyologys of the 18th century....
       & Schneider
      Johann Gottlob Schneider

      Johann Gottlob Theaenus Schneider was a German Empire classicist and natural history.Schneider was born at Koilmen in Saxony. In 1774, on the recommendation of Christian Gottlob Heine, he became secretary to the famous Strasbourg scholar Richard Fran?ois Brunck, and in 1811 became professor of ancient languages and eloquence at Breslau...
      , 1801)
    • African wedgefish
      African wedgefish

      The African wedgefish, guitarra, Lubbert's guitarfish, or spikenose wedgefish is a species of fish in the Rhynchobatidae family....
      , Rhynchobatus luebberti Ehrenbaum, 1915
  • Genus Tarsistes
    • Tarsistes philippii
      Tarsistes philippii

      Tarsistes philippii is a species of guitarfish, family Rhinobatidae. It is known only from a dried head from the Juan Fern?ndez Islands off Chile....
       Jordan
      David Starr Jordan

      David Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. was a leading eugenics, ichthyologist , educator and peace activist. He was president of Indiana University and Stanford University....
      , 1919
  • Genus Trygonorrhina
    Trygonorrhina

    The fiddler rays or banjo sharks are a genus, Trygonorrhina, of guitarfish, family Rhinobatidae. There are three species, found along the eastern and southern coasts of Australia....
    • Southern fiddler, Trygonorrhina fasciata (Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841)
    • Magpie fiddler ray, Trygonorrhina melaleuca Scott, 1954
  • Genus Zanobatus
    • Striped panray, Zanobatus schoenleinii (Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841)
  • Genus Zapteryx
    Zapteryx

    Zapteryx is a genus of fish in the Rhinobatidae family.It contains the following species:* shortnose guitarfish * banded guitarfish * southern banded guitarfish ...
    • Lesser guitarfish
      Lesser guitarfish

      The lesser guitarfish or lesser sandshark is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family. It is found in Angola, Namibia, South Africa, and possibly Mozambique....
      , Zapteryx brevirostris (Müller
      Johannes Peter Müller

      Johannes Peter M?ller , was a Germany physiologist, comparative anatomy, and ichthyology not only known for his discoveries but also for his ability to synthesize knowledge....
       & Henle
      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle

      Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle was a Germany physician, pathologist and anatomist. He is credited with the discovery of the loop of Henle in the kidney....
      , 1841)
    • Banded guitarfish
      Banded guitarfish

      The banded guitarfish, mottled guitarfish, prickly skate, or striped guitarfish is a species of fish in the Rhinobatidae family....
      , Zapteryx exasperata (Jordan
      David Starr Jordan

      David Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. was a leading eugenics, ichthyologist , educator and peace activist. He was president of Indiana University and Stanford University....
       & Gilbert, 1880)
    • Zapteryx xyster Jordan
      David Starr Jordan

      David Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. was a leading eugenics, ichthyologist , educator and peace activist. He was president of Indiana University and Stanford University....
       & Evermann, 1896


Further reading

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