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fishing forecast

whitesnout guitarfish

Pseudobatos leucorhynchus · Rhinobatidae · predator

SeaIUCN global: VU · vulnerableessential profile

Shallow-water guitarfish of sandy bottoms in the Pacific, from Mexico to Ecuador, including the Galápagos. Vulnerable, and caught for subsistence.

Also called: raia-viola-de-focinho-branco, guitarra trompa blanca, guitarra, whitesnout guitarfish

Scientific illustration of Whitesnout guitarfish
maximum
118 cm
depth
2–8 m
location

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period

Reading the weather across 3 global models and 31 simulations…

the species

everything about the whitesnout guitarfish

overview

who is the whitesnout guitarfish

The whitesnout guitarfish belongs to the family Rhinobatidae and reaches 118 cm. It lives in shallow waters, 2 to 8 m deep, on sandy bottoms, from Mexico to Ecuador and the Galápagos. It is benthic, meaning it lives on the bottom. It is ovoviviparous, with litters of 1 to 6 pups, born at 19 cm. Females mature at around 48 cm, and males at around 51 cm. It is caught for subsistence.

Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the whitesnout guitarfish; in the meantime, see the similar species.

how to recognize it

identification

Guitarfish with a disc longer than wide and a long snout with a rounded tip, like other Pacific guitarfish. The common name comes from its pale snout. To tell it apart from the shovelnose guitarfish, which also lives in the Mexican Pacific, look at the pale snout and the depth: this species lives in very shallow water, 2 to 8 m.

distribution

where found

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Eastern Pacific, from Mexico to Ecuador, including the Galápagos Islands, in shallow waters and sandy bottoms.

Habitat: Shallow waters, 2 to 8 m deep, over sandy bottoms.

what the law says

rules for the whitesnout guitarfish

Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.

We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.

catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.

Ray that is harmless to the angler. Hold it by the disc, without pulling by the tail, and release it with minimal handling.

calculator

how much it weighs without taking it out of the water

Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.00186, b = 3.12; 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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sources and references

Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.

  1. scientific FishBase: Pseudobatos leucorhynchus (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
  2. scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Pseudobatos leucorhynchusNames by country and language.
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