Common ray vs Common Seahorse

Telatrygon biasa compared with Hippocampus kuda

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common ray	Common Seahorse
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Elasmobranchii	Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fish)
Order	Myliobatiformes (Myliobatiformes)	Perciformes (Perch-like Fish)
Family	Dasyatidae	Pomacentridae (Clownfish & Damselfish)
Genus	Telatrygon	Amphiprion (Clownfish)
Species	Telatrygon biasa	Hippocampus kuda

Evolutionary Relationship

Common ray and Common Seahorse share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

Conservation Status

Common ray

VU — Vulnerable

Common Seahorse

VU — Vulnerable

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common ray	Common Seahorse
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	5 years
Average Length	—	17 cm
Average Weight	—	10 g

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common ray

Common Seahorse

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 7 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, and Philippines. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Common ray

<em>Telatrygon biasa</em>, the common ray, is a cartilaginous fish in the family Dasyatidae, order Myliobatiformes, belonging to the broader class Chondrichthyes. The species is assessed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, indicating elevated concern over population viability. Common rays are demersal elasmobranchs typically found in shallow coastal and inshore marine habitats, resting on sandy or muddy substrates. Like other dasyatid stingrays, <em>Telatrygon biasa</em> typically feeds on benthic invertebrates including crustaceans, mollusks, and worms, which it detects using electroreceptive ampullae of Lorenzini. It typically moves by undulating its broad pectoral disc, a hallmark locomotion style of stingrays. The vulnerable status of this species likely reflects pressures from bycatch in coastal fisheries and habitat degradation, which are common threats for inshore ray species across the Indo-Pacific region. Biological traits such as lifespan, precise body measurements, and detailed diet composition remain poorly documented for this taxon, and further field research is needed to characterize population structure and reproductive ecology. Conservation measures targeting bycatch reduction in artisanal and commercial fisheries would benefit this species.

Common Seahorse

The common seahorse is found in tropical and temperate waters. Males carry and deliver the babies.