The patchwork stingaree (''Urolophus flavomosaicus'') is a little-known

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of stingray in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Urolophidae The Urolophidae are a family of rays in the order Myliobatiformes, commonly known as stingarees or round stingrays. This family formerly included the genera '' Urobatis'' and '' Urotrygon'' of the Americas, which are presently recognized as formi ...

, with a disjunct distribution off northwestern and northeastern Australia. It usually inhabits the outer continental shelf, at a depth of . This species has a diamond-shaped

pectoral fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

disc much wider than long, and a short, flattened tail with a prominent

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin located on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates within various taxa of the animal kingdom. Many species of animals possessing dorsal fins are not particularly closely related to each other, though through c ...

and leaf-like

caudal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

. There is a skirt-shaped curtain of skin between its nostrils. Its dorsal color pattern resembles a

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

of dark brown rings with light-colored centers, separated by fine reticulated lines. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of nat ...

(IUCN) has listed the patchwork stingaree under

Least Concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

, as it is subject to minimal fishing pressure.

Taxonomy

Peter Last and Martin Gomon described the patchwork stingaree in a 1987 issue of ''Memoirs of the National Museum of Victoria'', giving it the specific epithet ''flavomosaicus'' from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''flavus'' ("yellow") and ''mosaicus'' ("mosaic") in reference to its coloration. A male across, collected north of

Port Hedland, Western Australia Port Hedland ( Kariyarra: ''Marapikurrinya'') is the second largest town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with an urban population of 14,320 Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. at June 2018 including the satellite town of So ...

on 21 April 1982, by the research

trawl Trawling is a method of fishing that involves pulling a fishing net through the water behind one or more boats. The net used for trawling is called a trawl. This principle requires netting bags which are towed through water to catch different speci ...

er FRV ''Soela'', was designated as the

type specimen In biology, a type is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralizes th ...

. It seems to be most closely related to the sandyback stingaree (''U. bucculentus'') and the butterfly stingaree (''U. papilio'').

Distribution and habitat

The patchwork stingaree is a northern Australian

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

with a discontinuous range: the western population is found from the

Houtman Abrolhos The Houtman Abrolhos (often called the Abrolhos Islands) is a chain of 122 islands and associated coral reefs, in the Indian Ocean off the west coast of Australia, about west of Geraldton, Western Australia. It is the southernmost true coral ...

Cape Leveque Cape Leveque is at the northernmost tip of the Dampier Peninsula in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Cape Leveque is (via the Cape Leveque Road) north of Broome, and is remote with few facilities. Nevertheless, the Cape's sandy be ...

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

, and the eastern population from

Caloundra Caloundra ( ) is a coastal town and the southernmost town in the Sunshine Coast Region in South East Queensland, Australia. Geography Caloundra is north of the Brisbane central business district. Caloundra is accessible from Landsborough ...

Townsville Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

. It seems to be rather patchily distributed, with only small numbers of individuals present at any particular location. This benthic species is mostly found over fine substrates on the outer continental shelf, and has been reported from deep.

Description

Among the largest members of its family, the patchwork stingaree can grow to at least long. It has a diamond-shaped

disc much wider than long, with broadly rounded outer corners and nearly straight anterior margins that converge at an obtuse angle. The tip of the snout protrudes slightly past the disc. The small eyes are followed by comma-shaped spiracles with angular posterior rims. The outer rim of each nostril may be enlarged into a small knob; between the nostrils is a skirt-shaped curtain of skin with a finely fringed trailing margin. There are 8–14 stubby papillae (nipple-like structures) on the floor of the large mouth, as well as a narrow patch of large papillae on the lower jaw. The teeth are small with roughly oval bases, and the five pairs of

gill slit Gill slits are individual openings to gills, i.e., multiple gill arches, which lack a single outer cover. Such gills are characteristic of cartilaginous fish such as sharks and rays, as well as deep-branching vertebrates such as lampreys. In con ...

s are short. The pelvic fins are small with curved margins. The short, very flattened tail measures 67–79% as long as the disc and terminates in a short, deep, leaf-shaped

. A lateral skin fold runs along the each side of the tail, which is most obvious in juveniles. The upper surface of the tail bears a rather large

followed by a serrated stinging spine. The skin entirely lacks dermal denticles. The dorsal coloration of this species is distinctive, consisting of a yellowish background with numerous large, dark brown rings surrounding light-colored spots, that may be separated from each other by a network of fine pale lines (particularly at the center of the disc) to give the impression of a

. The rings become smaller and less well-defined towards the margins of the disc. The dorsal and caudal fins are light in adults and dark with nearly black margins in juveniles.

Biology and ecology

Virtually nothing is known of the natural history of the patchwork stingaree.

Ecologically Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their biophysical environment, physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosy ...

, it is apparently the

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

equivalent of the

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...

sandyback stingaree. Reproduction is presumably

aplacental viviparous Ovoviviparity, ovovivipary, ovivipary, or aplacental viviparity is a term used as a "bridging" form of reproduction between egg-laying oviparous and live-bearing viviparous reproduction. Ovoviviparous animals possess embryos that develop ins ...

like in other stingrays, with the developing embryos sustained by maternally produced histotroph ("

uterine The uterus (from Latin ''uterus'', plural ''uteri'') or womb () is the organ in the reproductive system of most female mammals, including humans that accommodates the embryonic and fetal development of one or more embryos until birth. The ...

milk"). The litter size is probably small, judging by related species. Males mature sexually at under long.

Human interactions

Only the Coral Sea Fishery (CSF) off Queensland and the Western Trawl Fisheries (WTF) off Western Australia regularly operate within the geographical and depth range occupied by the patchwork stingaree. Both fisheries have a negligible impact on this species because of their small scale, and are unlikely to expand in the near future. As a result, the

(IUCN) has listed the patchwork stingaree under

. It would potentially benefit from the implementation of the 2004 Australian National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3281188 patchwork stingaree Marine fish of Eastern Australia Marine fish of Western Australia Fauna of Queensland Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by Peter R. Last Taxa named by Martin F. Gomon patchwork stingaree