Pseudobatos buthi, the spadenose guitarfish, is a ray in the family Rhinobatidae. Described in 2019 based on 82 museum specimens, little is known about this species in the wild. All 82 museum specimens were collected in the 1940s and 1950s and sat hidden at UCLA's fish collection and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County until they were described by PhD student, Kelsi Rutledge.[2]
| Pseudobatos buthi | |
|---|---|
| |
| P. buthi, the spadenose guitarfish | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Order: | Rhinopristiformes |
| Family: | Rhinobatidae |
| Genus: | Pseudobatos |
| Species: | P. buthi
|
| Binomial name | |
| Pseudobatos buthi K.M. Rutledge 2019
| |
It likely is similar in ecology and behavior to its closest relative, Pseudobatos productus. This species is found in the Gulf of California and is a fairly small ray, with an intermediate body form between that of a shark and a ray. It is benthic and found in shallow water, spending most of its time on the seafloor in sandy, muddy, coastal regions. It is different from other species due to its morphological characters, including a more narrow head and snout, as well as no spots or scales and thorns between orbits and down its snout.
This species garnered a lot of media attention due to the describer, Rutledge, who posted mock birth-announcement style photos with a preserved museum specimen,[3] including Forbes,[4] Spectrum1 News,[5] Smithsonian Magazine.[6]
References
edit- ^ Rigby, C.L. & Derrick, D. (2021). "Pseudobatos buthi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021: e.T157877009A196522247. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-2.RLTS.T157877009A196522247.en. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ Rutledge, Kelsi M. (2019). "A New Guitarfish of the Genus Pseudobatos (Batoidea: Rhinobatidae) with Key to the Guitarfishes of the Gulf of California". Copeia. 107 (3): 451–463. doi:10.1643/CI-18-166. S2CID 202846749.
- ^ Rutledge, Kelsi M. [@fishandfreckles] (August 30, 2019). "Welcome to the world P. buthi! I discovered a new species of ray called a guitarfish from the Gulf of California. (Also includes morphological analysis of all eastern pacific guitarfishes and dichotomous key) Read here. #newspecies https://doi.org/10.1643/CI-18-166 …pic.twitter.com/tosvnqwBfE" (Tweet) – via Twitter.[verification needed]
- ^ Márquez, Melissa Cristina (September 9, 2019). "Say Hello To A New Relative Of Sharks". Forbes.
- ^ Collins, Parker (September 18, 2019). "Graduate Student Discovers Species Lurking Inside a Museum". Spectrum News 1.
- ^ Hall, Danielle (September 10, 2019). "Scientist Lampoons Birth Announcements With Discovery of New 'Spadenose' Ray". Smithsonian.com.