Hexatrygon bickelli Heemstra & Smith, 1980
Sixgill stingray
Hexatrygon bickelli
photo by Shao, K.T.

Family:  Hexatrygonidae (Sixgill stingrays)
Max. size:  143 cm TL (male/unsexed); 111.7 cm TL (female)
Environment:  bathydemersal; marine; depth range 350 - 1120 m
Distribution:  Indo-Pacific: South Africa eastward to Japan, Australia and the Hawaiian Islands.
Diagnosis:  Dorsal spines (total): 0-0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 0-0. A bizarre-looking flabby stingray with a long, thick, fleshy snout (Ref. 5578). Dark violet-blue or brownish above, white below (Ref. 5578).
Biology:  Inhabits soft bottoms of upper continental slopes (Ref. 9906). Feeding habits unknown (Ref. 9906). Minimum depth from Ref. 58018. Probably caught with bottom trawls (Ref. 9906). Maximum length of female from Ref. 84148.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 05 May 2015 Ref. (130435)
Threat to humans:  harmless
Country info:  Collected during the Hearst Expedition 2011 done off Batangas and Mindoro, off SW Luzon (Ref. 95664).


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