Rays, belonging to the class Chondrichthyes, are the general names of many kinds of flat Chondrichthyes. Distributed in most waters of the world, from tropical to near-Arctic waters, from shallow water to deep water below 2700 meters. * * * 3 families and 9 genera. Rays are round or diamond-shaped, with broad pectoral fins extending from the snout to the slender tail root; Some species have sharp snouts, which are formed by coracoid cartilage protruding from the skull. The body is monochromatic or patterned, most kinds of ridges have spines or thorns, and some tail parts have power generation organs, so the power generation ability is weak. Rays vary in size: adult fish are only 50 cm; Giant rays can be as long as 2.5 meters. Rays are harmless benthic animals, usually partially buried in underwater sand.

Manta rays are the largest species of manta rays, generally flat [1], wider than long, up to 8 meters wide and weighing 3000 kilograms. The body plate is rhombic with one end wide and flat; The snout is wide and flat; The pectoral fin looks like a wing, and the pectoral fin in front of the head differentiates into two prominent head fins, which are located on both sides of the head; The tail is slender as a whip, the dorsal fin is small, and some species have one or more stingers on their tails; Mouth wide, front or lower; Teeth are thin and numerous, arranged like stones. The upper and lower jaws have teeth or the upper jaw has no teeth; The nose is in front of the mouth.

Photo album of manta rays (40 photos)

On the side, the water outlet is opened at the corner of the mouth; The spray hole is small and triangular, located behind the eyes, with a considerable distance from the eyes; Branchial pore width; The belt is deeply curved with a sharp extension in the middle. There are viviparous fossils from tertiary to modern times.