Notes on a giant devil ray, Manta birostris (Walbaum), caught off Madras

Abstract

Detailed measurments of a devil ray, Manta birostris (Walbaum), caught on 23-3-1981 off Madras along with some details on the internal organs arc given. Although the devil ray, Manta birostris (Walbaum), enjoying a wide distribution, has been recorded by Day (1978), Lloyd (1908), Sivaprakasam (1965) and Jones and Kumaran (1980) from Indian waters, by Tombazi (1934) from Karachi and by Smith (1961) from South Africa, hardly any information is available on the internal anatomy of the animal. One female specimen (Fig 1, A) measuring 4.27 m in width was caught in a gill net {Iraga Veda) off Nochikuppam near Madras on 23-3-1981. Since there was no ready market for it, it was brought to Royapuram landing centre in a catamaran and sold for Rs. 200|-. Judging from the observations of Grant (1965), it would have weighed 750 kg