Round stingray (Urolophus halleri) is a saltwater species recorded in the United States. It is mainly found over sand, mud, seagrass, at depths of 0–91 m.
Scientific name: Urolophus halleri · Water: Saltwater
Size: up to 31 cm
The round stingray (Urolophus halleri, also placed in the genus Urobatis) is a small round ray of the family Urotrygonidae, named after the young son of US Army Major Granville O. Haller, who was stung on the foot while wading in San Diego Bay. It is a nearly round, brown or greyish ray with pale yellow spots and a short, stout tail carrying a long serrated spine, and it feeds mainly on benthic invertebrates, favouring soft mud and sand, often with eelgrass, from the shallows out to at least 91 m. It is endemic to the eastern North Pacific from Humboldt Bay in northern California to Panama and is most common off southern California and Baja California, where it is most abundant in coastal and bay waters from spring to fall and moves into deeper water in winter; on southern California beaches it is responsible for many stings to bathers who step on it. American surf and pier anglers catch it readily on small hooks baited with squid or worm, and it is often released rather than handled because of the spine, which is shed and replaced each year.
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