Rays Codexery

Ningaloo maskray

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Ningaloo maskray

CSIRO National Fish Collection · via Wikipedia: Ningaloo maskray · CC BY 3.0

The Ningaloo maskray is a small, bottom-dwelling ray endemic to northwestern Australia.[1] The species was first sighted during a study of Ningaloo Marine Park's sharks and rays.[2] The maximum recorded disc width for this species is 30 cm.[2]

Scientific classification

  1. KingdomAnimalia
  2. PhylumChordata
  3. ClassChondrichthyes
  4. SubclassElasmobranchii
  5. OrderMyliobatiformes
  6. FamilyDasyatidae
  7. GenusNeotrygon
  8. SpeciesNeotrygon ningalooensis

Named by Last, W. T. White & Puckridge, 2010

Close relatives

Other species of Neotrygon with a Codexery entry.

Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Ningaloo maskray (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 712402 (CC BY 4.0)

Conservation status

Least Concern (LC)

  1. LC▲ this species
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX
Population trend
Not held in our sources — see the assessment
Assessment published
2025

Source: IUCN Red List assessment · GBIF copy of the Red List category

How big is it?

Size comparison: Ningaloo maskray and a personA 0.3 m long ningaloo maskray drawn to scale next to a 1.8 m tall person. Schematic shapes, not a likeness.0.3 m1.8 m

Largest length in the source, 0.3 m, next to a 1.8 m person.

Diagram: drawn by Codexery, schematic shapes to scale (not a likeness). Length: Wikipedia: Ningaloo maskray

Where the ningaloo maskray has been recorded

Where the ningaloo maskray has been recorded21 mapped locations from 139 GBIF occurrence records; marked places: Ningaloo Marine Park (Commonwealth waters), Coral Bay, Western Australia, Shark BayNingaloo Marine Park (Commonwealth waters)Coral Bay, Western AustraliaShark Bay

Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (139 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 11 inland records left out (institution coordinates).

Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain) · place coordinates: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Biology and range

Its upper surface is yellowish brown with dark orange and light blue spots.[2] This species has more protruding eyes than other maskrays, allowing it to bury deeper in the substrate.[2] The pectoral fin disc of the Ningaloo maskray is diamond-shaped and has a width about 1.1 times its length.[2] A darker marking across the eyes, similar to a mask, is present but can be difficult to see.[2]

On the whip-like tail, there are two slender stinging spines, and behind these spines the tail displays alternating black and white bands.[2] In the specific habitat where it lives, the ray's coloring helps hide it from predators.[2] This ray lives in inshore waters shallower than 5 m, on fine reddish sand near reefs.[1]

What the specialist sources record

The World Register of Marine Species lists the accepted name as Neotrygon ningalooensis Last, White & Puckridge, 2010, in the family Dasyatidae.[3] GBIF holds 143 occurrence records for this taxon as of 7 October 2026.[4] Two adult male specimens, measuring 30 cm and 29 cm across, serve as the type specimens; they were collected at Five Fingers Reef near Coral Bay, Western Australia.[2] Mitochondrial DNA analysis reveals deep genetic differences between the Coral Bay and Shark Bay populations, suggesting they belong to distinct lineages.[5]

It is unclear if these two populations are separate species, because they show no physical differences and their known nuclear DNA markers are identical.[5] The IUCN currently does not have enough information to determine a conservation status for this species.[6]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Ningaloo maskray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ferretti, F., "Neotrygon ningalooensis", 2015; "Neotrygon ningalooensis n. sp. (Myliobatoidei, Dasyatidae), a new maskray from Australia", Aqua: International Journal of Ichthyology, 2010, p. 37–50 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Ningaloo maskray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Neotrygon ningalooensis n. sp. (Myliobatoidei, Dasyatidae), a new maskray from Australia", Aqua: International Journal of Ichthyology, 2010, p. 37–50 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. World Register of Marine Species, Neotrygon ningalooensis (AphiaID 712402). CC BY 4.0. marinespecies.org
  4. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Neotrygon ningalooensis (taxon key 5963010). CC BY 4.0 (backbone); counts are facts. gbif.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Ningaloo maskray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Phylogeography of the Indo-West Pacific maskrays (Dasyatidae, Neotrygon): a complex example of chondrichthyan radiation in the Cenozoic", Ecology and Evolution, 2012, p. 217–232 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Ningaloo maskray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ferretti, F., "Neotrygon ningalooensis", 2015 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Ningaloo maskray (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Related entries

Same family (Dasyatidae)

Atlantic stingray Hypanus sabinus, Bennett's stingray Hemitrygon bennetti, Black-spotted whipray Maculabatis astra, Blackedge whipray Himantura marginata, Blackish stingray Hemitrygon navarrae, Blue stingray Dasyatis chrysonota

More in Rays

Peppered maskrayPlain maskrayCowtail stingrayRoughnose stingrayHortle's whiprayJenkins' whiprayPink whiprayWhitenose whiprayBluespotted ribbontail rayTaeniura lessoniRound fantail stingrayRound ribbontail ray

Test yourself

Three questions drawn from this entry’s sources. Pick an answer to check it.

1. In what year was the Ningaloo maskray first scientifically described?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is 2010.

2. To which genus does the Ningaloo maskray belong?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is Neotrygon.

3. What is the scientific name of the Ningaloo maskray?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is Neotrygon ningalooensis.

Answers checked against the source article

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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