Creatures in Crisis
Photograph of Bowmouth guitarfish (Rhina ancylostoma), recorded as Critically Endangered
Bowmouth guitarfish (Rhina ancylostoma). Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Critically Endangered

Bowmouth guitarfish

Rhina ancylostoma

Bowmouth guitarfish is a shark or ray in the family Rhinidae (order Rhinopristiformes) — Rhina ancylostoma, recorded as Critically Endangered.

Status
Critically Endangered
Scientific name
Rhina ancylostoma
CITES
Appendix II
Taxonomy
Elasmobranchii · Rhinopristiformes · Rhinidae · Rhina

Appearance

The head is short, wide, and flattened with an evenly rounded snout. The front portion of the head, among them the medium-sized eyes and large spiracles, is clearly distinct from the body. The five pairs of ventral gill slits are positioned close to the lateral margins of the head.The body is deepest in front of the two tall and falcate (sickle-shaped) dorsal fins. The first dorsal fin is about a third larger than the second and originates over the pelvic fin origins.

Bowmouth guitarfish is a heavily built fish growing to 2.7 m (8.9 ft) long and 135 kg (298 lb) in weight. The tail is much longer than the body and ends in a large, crescent-shaped caudal fin. The lower caudal fin lobe is more than half the length of the upper.

Range and habitat

While uncommon, Rhina ancylostomus is widely distributed in the coastal tropical waters of the western Indo-Pacific. In the Indian Ocean, it is found from KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa to the Red Sea (among them the Seychelles), across the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia (among them the Maldives), to Shark Bay in Western Australia. Its Pacific range extends northward to Korea and southern Japan, eastward to New Guinea, and southward to New South Wales.

Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.

Diet

Its bands of flattened teeth allow it to crush hard-shelled prey. The tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier) is known to prey on Bowmouth guitarfish.

In crisis

It is a strong-swimming predator of bony fishes, crustaceans, and molluscs. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed Rhina ancylostomus as Critically Endangered because it is widely caught by artisanal and commercial fisheries for its valuable fins and meat.

CITES lists this taxon on Appendix II. Confirm the current appendix on the CITES checklist.

Bowmouth guitarfish is Critically Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.

Sources

Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Bowmouth guitarfish, Wikidata item Q1190545. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia · Wikidata · IUCN Red List.

Also in this catalog

Photograph of Vaquita (Phocoena sinus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Vaquita

Phocoena sinus
Photograph of Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Javan rhinoceros

Rhinoceros sondaicus
Photograph of Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Sumatran orangutan

Pongo abelii
Photograph of Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Axolotl

Ambystoma mexicanum

Quick answers

What is Bowmouth guitarfish?
Bowmouth guitarfish is a shark or ray in the family Rhinidae (order Rhinopristiformes) — Rhina ancylostoma.
What is the conservation status of Bowmouth guitarfish?
Critically Endangered, as the IUCN category stored on Wikidata for Rhina ancylostoma. Confirm the official assessment on iucnredlist.org.
Where does Bowmouth guitarfish live?
In the Indian Ocean, it is found from KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa to the Red Sea (among them the Seychelles), across the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia (among them the Maldives), to Shark Bay in Western Australia.
Why is Bowmouth guitarfish in crisis?
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed Rhina ancylostomus as Critically Endangered because it is widely caught by artisanal and commercial fisheries for its valuable fins and meat.
Is this the IUCN Red List page for Rhina ancylostoma?
No. This is a researched catalog account. The Red List is the assessment.
Is Bowmouth guitarfish a pet?
An animal on this catalog is in crisis in the wild. Keeping one is usually the wrong question.