![]() The pectoral fins are large and connected to the body to form the ray’s “disc.” The shape of the disc differs from species to species and may be circular, oval, wedge-shaped or triangular. Rays have a flattened body shape and an elongated tail. ![]() The Bluespotted Ribbontail Ray - Taeniura lymna is a very common, timid ray with an oval-shaped disc and two venomous tail spikes toward the tip of its tail. In fact, rays are some of the largest fish in the sea! Body Shapes More than half of all ray species are over 20 inches (50 cm) long. Most rays are in-between these two extremes. The biggest ray is the manta ray which is over 22 feet (6.7 m) wide and weighs many tons (thousands of pounds). The smallest ray is the Short-nose electric ray, which is the size of a pancake it is only 4 inches (10 cm) across and weighs about 1 pound (0.5 kg). Rays range in size from just a few inches to over 22 feet wide. They funnel the food into their mouth while they swim, using two large, flap-like cephalic lobes which extend forward from the eyes. Mantas eat microscopic plankton, small fish, and tiny crustaceans. This graceful swimmer is up to 29.5 ft (9 m) wide. The color variation among rays is huge color even varies from male to female in some species. Some rays have a series of thorns on their body as a defense against predators. Some rays have long, whip-like tails, other species have short tails. Many rays have spines on their tail which can poison other animals when stung. ![]() Unlike other fish, rays and sharks have no bones their skeleton is made of cartilage, which is a tough, fibrous substance, not nearly as hard as bone. Rays often congregate in huge groups of up to thousands of individuals, but other rays live alone. These social animals live in seas all over the world, and even in some estuaries. Rays are a type of flattened fish and are closely related to sharks.
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