Newquay Aquarium Houses Baby Rays
Sunday, 6th June, 2010 12:51:44 PM
Source: http://www.thisisthewestcountry.co.uk/news/cornwall_news/8201676.Newquay_aqua...
Six baby rays have gone on display at Newquay’s Blue Reef Aquarium.
The tiny rays, each measuring just 10centimetres across, were hand reared by Newquay’s sister aquarium in Sussex after being donated by a fisherman.
There are two thornback rays, two blonde rays and a pair of painted rays – all of which are native to British waters.
Blue Reef’s curator, Matt Slater, said: “The babies are in great condition and perfect miniature replicas of the adults.
“They came here as part of a swapping programme where we gave them a pair of our own captive-bred southern stingrays.
“From our point of view it’s great to be able to show visitors the variety and beauty of our native fish species – the painted rays in particular have these amazing patterns and colourings that develop as they mature,” he added.
Thornbacks are the most common ray in British waters and can grow up to 1.2 metres in length. The species gets its name from the coarse prickles which cover their upper body.
Blonde rays are so called because of their light body colour although they can in fact be quite dark, depending on the colour of the surrounding sea bed.
Also known as the undulate ray, the painted ray is one of the most distinctive rays to be found in UK water. This species is patterned with long, wavy, dark lines edged with white spots that run parallel to the wing margins.
Rays belong to the same family as sharks and are effectively flattened-out versions of their close cousins. UK waters are home to at least 15 different species including the electric ray and the common skate, which can reach lengths of up to three metres.
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