Fishes of the IVestern North Atlantic 331 



lobes discontinuous at tip of tail. Anterior leg-like subdivision of pelvics nearly as 

 long (95 "/o) ^s distance from pelvic origin to rear corners, broader than thick, fleshy, 

 with one articulation about midway of its length, inner edge of the terminal segment 

 scalloped, corresponding to tips of the three radial cartilages; posterior lobe of pelvics 

 with narrowly rounded rear corner reaching rearward only about as far as rear limits 

 of disc; outer margin joined for about ^3 its length to margin of pectoral, inner edge 

 joined to side of tail nearly to tip. 



Anterior rays of pectorals extending forward to a little posterior to base of ter- 

 minal expansion of snout; firm rostral cartilage reaching about to base of terminal 

 filament. 



Color. Ash gray above, except for unpigmented and translucent spaces between 

 rostral ridge and anterior rays of pectorals; orbits dusky; terminal expansion of snout 

 narrowly and irregularly margined with black; posterior part of back with a sooty 

 blotch on one side near midline on largest male, several such blotches, haphazardly 

 located, on largest female. Lower surface pale grayish white, the outer posterior belt 

 of pectorals sooty gray, terminal expansion of snout narrowly and irregularly edged 

 with black; tail sooty at base. 



Size. How large this Skate may grow is not known, for the largest male seen 

 so far, 400 mm long to base of terminal filament, is immature, its claspers not yet 

 reaching as far as the tips of its pelvics. 



Developmental Stages. Presumably Springeria is oviparous like other rajids, but its 

 eggs have not been seen. 



Habits. All the specimens seen were trawled at 185—258 fathoms; this, with the 

 improbability that this Skate would have been overlooked if it occurred in shallow 

 water, suggests that it is confined to depths greater than about 1 50 fathoms. Nothing 

 else is known of its habits. 



Range. So far known only in the northern side of the Gulf of Mexico at the 

 localities listed on page 328 under Study Material. 



Reference : 



Springeria folirostris Bigelow and Schroeder, J. Wash. Acad. Sci., ^l (3), 195 1 : 112 (descr., ill., Gulf of Mexico). 



Suborder MYLIO BATOIDEA 



Sting Rays, River Rays, Butterfly Rays, Eagle Rays, Cow-nosed Rays, 

 Devil Rays, Mantas 



Characters. Head and trunk anterior to axils of pectorals strongly flattened dorso- 

 ventrally, forming a disc with the pectorals, essentially as in Rajoidea; disc ranging 

 from oval longitudinally to much broader than long. Tail sharply marked off from body 

 sector, ranging from shorter than disc to much longer, in many cases like a whiplash 

 toward tip. Pectorals either continuous along sides of head or with anterior portions 

 separated along head as independent rostral lobe (or lobes) or as fin-like structures. 



