Pseudobatos percellens
Ray with a shark-like body and a triangular snout, from shallow soft bottoms. Vulnerable in Brazil with catch banned: if it is caught in bottom or beach fishing, release it right away.
Also called: raia-viola, viola
The guitarfish (family Rhinobatidae) has an elongated, shark-like body, a triangular disc and a thick tail with two dorsal fins. It lives on shallow soft shelf bottoms, from 0 to 110 m and usually down to about 80 m. In the western Atlantic it ranges from Cuba and the Caribbean to Brazil and south to Mar del Plata, Argentina; there is also a record from tropical West Africa. It is ovoviviparous. Its meat is considered low quality, but the species is commercially fished and sold for aquariums in Ceará. IUCN classifies it as Endangered (2020), and the national list as Vulnerable, a category it already had in 2022: catch, transport and sale are banned. It is in CITES Appendix II. It turns up by chance in beach and bottom fishing.
Guitarfish body: triangular disc and pointed snout, thick shark-like tail with two dorsal fins and a caudal fin. Olive-grey, reddish-brown or chocolate-brown back, with dark brown spots or flecks on the sides; a pale, translucent area on each side of the snout ridges, and a dark sooty smudge on the snout tip, more or less visible. Short nostrils without large tubercles on the snout tip. Yellowish, grey or dirty-white belly. The long-snouted guitarfish (Pseudobatos horkelii) is another Critically Endangered species in Brazil.
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Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
Western Atlantic, from Cuba and the Caribbean to Brazil and south to Mar del Plata (Argentina); there is also a record from tropical West Africa. FishBase gives the species a latitude band (23°N to 38°S) covering the whole Brazilian coast; abundance by stretch was not checked.
Habitat: Soft sand and mud bottoms in shallow shelf waters, 0 to 110 m.
coast
No known season: the species occurs year-round. Catch is banned at any time; this information is for knowing when it may turn up by chance.
Any time. There is no time-of-day study for this species in the sources checked.
Subtropical to tropical species: cold water keeps it away from shallow areas (estimate).
Little known effect.
Little known effect.
Little known effect.
Not applicable at sea.
Not very sensitive; it stays still on the bottom.
Little direct effect.
Enters shallow areas on the rising tide to look for food (estimate).
From 0 to 110 m, usually down to about 80 m.
accessories
If a guitarfish is hooked while bottom or beach fishing, keep it in the water and release it quickly. FishBase classifies it as harmless, but hold it as little as possible, without squeezing the body. Cut the line close to the mouth if the hook won't come out easily.
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
Conservation: Catch banned throughout Brazil. Already on the previous list (Portaria MMA 148/2022) as VU. Global assessment: Endangered (IUCN, Jul 5, 2020), a more serious category than the national one. CITES Appendix II (according to FishBase).
The national list (Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.667/2026) classifies the species as VU. Under Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.666/2026 (art. 3º), VU, EN and CR species have full protection: catch, transport, storage, processing and sale are banned. If you hook one by accident, release it at once, handling it as little as possible.
Source: Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.666/2026, art. 3º, and Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.667/2026
In 2021 Colombia stopped treating marine sharks and rays as fishery resources (AUNAP Resolution 0380/2021) and began treating them as hydrobiological resources; the recitals of Decree 281/2021 say they may not be extracted for commercial or sport purposes, and the decree creates an environmental protection plan and sets who enforces it. The articles include no list of species or sizes, and we did not check later AUNAP rules on incidental catch. When in doubt, release it in the water.
Many sharks and rays are on the national list (CR, EN or VU), with catching, keeping and transport prohibited, including those listed here. Species added to the list only in 2026 follow the 180-day deadline (until about Oct 25, 2026). If unsure of the species, release it.
Source: Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.666/2026 (art. 3º) and nº 1.667/2026 (Annex I)
This is not catch and release: it is release of an accidental catch. Keep the ray in the water, hold it as little as possible, and remove the hook with long pliers or cut the line close to the mouth. Don't drag it across dry sand or leave it in the sun.
Catch and trade banned in Brazil. FishBase describes its meat as low quality. Don't buy it.
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.00288, b = 3.09; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
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The season factors (months), the time of day, and the sensitivities (cold, pressure, moon, wind, rain, tide, strong light, murky water, and noise) are editorial estimates by the app, based on the literature cited below and on field experience of anglers and guides. They are not official data or measurements made for this species and may vary by region and year. Closed seasons and legal rules appear in the rules section, with the standard and link. The months indicate when the species is usually found near the coast or at the fishing spot, not a catch season. The water temperature range is also an editorial estimate, supported by FishBase values where they exist.
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