The porcupine ray is appropriately named for its prickly appearance. The spikes on its back serve as the ray′s armor, as it lacks the venomous barb most stingray species have. Sightings of this ray are uncommon, so consider yourself lucky if one crosses your path!
The porcupine ray can be found in the Indo-West Pacific Oceans and in tropical West Africa. They spend most of their time on sandy seafloors, in caves, and around coral reefs, and occasionally hang out in lagoons. The porcupine ray grows to a maximum length of 1.5 meters (4.9 feet). Its body is flattened into an oval-shaped disc with a rounded snout, a brown or gray back, and a white ventral surface below. Porcupine rays forage for prey including worms, shrimp, crabs, and bivalves. Little is known about this ray due to their rarity.