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Learn about the fish that call our Reef Lagoon home. Rays are part of a group of fish called elasmobranchs, whose skeletons are made of soft, flexible cartilage, while the other fish in the lagoon are teleosts, or bony fishes.

 

Cownose ray

Cownose ray, or Rhinoptera javanica

Scientific name: Rhinoptera javanica
Status: Near threatened
Diet: Clams, oysters, other invertebrates
Reproduction: Ovoviviparous—rays produce eggs that remain inside the mother’s body until they hatch, resulting in a live birth

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Blue-spotted ribbontail ray

Blue-spotted ribbontail ray, or Taeniura lymma

Scientific name: Taeniura lymma
Status: Near threatened
Diet: Mollusks, worms, shrimp, clams
Reproduction: Ovoviviparous

Photo credit: Jens PetersenCC BY via Wikimedia Commons

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Honeycomb ray

Honeycomb ray, or Himantura uarnak

Scientific name: Himantura uarnak
Status: Vulnerable
Diet: Crabs, shrimps, bivalves, gastropods, worms, jellyfish, bony fishes
Reproduction: Viviparous

Photo credit: Steven WallingCC BY via Wikimedia Commons

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Bluespotted stingray

Bluespotted stingray, or Neotrygon kuhlii

Scientific name: Neotrygon kuhlii
Status: Data deficient
Diet: Shrimp, crabs
Reproduction: Ovoviviparous

Photo credit: Bernard DupontCC BY via Wikimedia Commons

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Diamond fish (or Mono)

Diamond fish

Scientific name: ​Monodactylus argenteus
Status: Not yet assessed
Diet: Plankton and detritus
Reproduction: Broadcast spawners; males and females shed gametes into the water, where fertilization occurs

Photo credit: Richard LingCC BY

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Convict surgeon

Convict surgeon

Scientific name: Acanthurus triostegus
Status: Least concern
Diet: Benthic algae
Reproduction: Oviparous broadcast spawners; found in large groups (up to several hundred) that exhibit mass spawning behavior

Photo credit: briangratwickeCC BY

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Copperband butterflyfish

Copperband butterflyfish

Scientific name: Chelmon rostratus
Status: Least concern
Diet: Benthic invertebrates, which it finds in rock cervices with its elongated snout
Reproduction: Oviparous

Photo credit: Ruben UndheimCC BY

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Indian pompano

Indian pompano

Scientific name: Trachinotus mookalee
Status: Not yet assessed
Diet: Small fishes and crustaceans
Reproduction: Broadcast spawners​

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