Spotted round ray

"Cortez round stingray" redirects here and is not to be confused with Round stingray, sometimes known as Cortez ray.

Urobatis maculatus, known as the spotted round ray or Cortez round stingray, is a species of round ray, within the genus Urobatis, and of the family Urotrygonidae.^[2] It is endemic to Mexico, with its natural habitats being shallow seas, subtidal aquatic beds, coral reefs, estuarine waters, intertidal marshes, and coastal saline lagoons.

Spotted round ray
Spotted round ray in Bahía de Loreto National Park
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Chondrichthyes
Subclass:	Elasmobranchii
Order:	Myliobatiformes
Family:	Urotrygonidae
Genus:	Urobatis
Species:	U. maculatus
Binomial name
Urobatis maculatus (Garman, 1913)
Synonyms
Urolophus maculatus Garman, 1913

Spotted round ray in the Gulf of California

Spotted round rays reach a length of 42 centimetres (17 in) TL.^[3] The spotted round ray is ideal for captivity due to its hardiness and smaller size, and it is also a favorable candidate for breeding in aquaria.^[4] It can be kept in a minimum 180 gallon aquarium with fine substrate, little décor, a bottom with much surface area (for sufficient swimming space), excellent filtration, protected internal tank equipment like heaters and filter intakes (by surrounding them with polyurethane foam barriers), and a secure lid.^[4] In the aquarium trade, it may be confused with the Round stingray, Urobatis halleri, which in the hobby may be called the Cortez ray as well.^[5]

The spotted round ray can be parasitized by the flatworm Pleorchis magniporus.^[6]