Rays

Bat ray

Myliobatis californica

A dark wing gliding over sand and kelp. Bat rays come and go as they please, and no sighting is ever a promise.

Least ConcernIn 2 Atlas countries

Least Concern (IUCN) means it is not at high risk of extinction. Wikipedia dates the assessment to 2015 and California Sea Grant says it has been Least Concern since 2006; I could not open the IUCN page itself to confirm the year.

Bat ray swimming past giant kelp at San Clemente Island, California — Photo: Clark Anderson/Aquaimages, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.5

Bat ray seen from above over a sandy bottom with its tail trailing, Crescent Bay, California — Photo: Gavin Skeen, iNaturalist, CC BY

Bat ray gliding in shallow marina water, Ventura, California — Photo: Irina Mitine, iNaturalist, CC BY

Photos show the species, not always the places on this page.

Length

Disc width up to about 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in) in most sources; California Sea Grant gives about 2 m (6 ft) for the largest females. Males are smaller, with the largest caught about 1 m (3 ft) across. FishBase gives a common width of about 1 m (3 ft 3 in)

Weight

Females up to about 90 kg (200 lb) and males up to about 17 kg (37 lb) according to Monterey Bay Aquarium and Sea Grant. FishBase lists a maximum published weight of 82.1 kg (181 lb), and Wikipedia says typical animals weigh about 9 to 14 kg (20 to 31 lb)

Next to a person

A large female is about as wide as a tall adult is tall, and can weigh as much as a heavy adult

What it eats

Clams, snails, crabs, shrimp, worms and some small fish. It uncovers prey by flapping its pectoral fins and digging with its snout, and crushes shells with flat, fused tooth plates. Wikipedia says it can dig trenches up to 20 cm (8 in) deep. California Sea Grant notes that it also eats crabs.

Around people

Calm, give space

How it lives

Bat rays live up to about 23 years. They give birth to live young (ovoviviparous): pregnancy lasts about 9 to 12 months, with 2 to 10 pups. Mating is in spring or summer. Males mature at about 2 to 3 years and females at about 5 to 6 years (Wikipedia). They are found from the surface to at least 108 m (FishBase), and California Sea Grant says to 180 m, over sand, mud, rock, kelp beds and in bays and estuaries. Some live alone and some gather in schools of thousands. They can leap out of the water. Predators include California sea lions and broadnose sevengill sharks.

Where it goes

Bat rays can be solitary or in large groups. Animal Diversity Web describes females as highly mobile within their range, and California Sea Grant says shallow bays and sloughs act as nurseries. I did not open a source with firm migration routes.

We only draw a journey on the map when scientists have tracked it or clearly documented it. For this animal we have not found one yet.

Populations

The range runs from central Oregon to the Gulf of California, including the Galapagos Islands (Wikipedia, FishBase). It is rated Least Concern by IUCN. California Sea Grant says stocks are considered stable and increasing, with sport and incidental catch but no formal management plan. There is no commercial fishery in California, while Wikipedia and Monterey Bay Aquarium say it is fished in Mexican waters. FishBase rates it as very vulnerable to fishing (75 out of 100) with low resilience, so population doubling takes 4.5 to 14 years.

Meet it respectfully

Watch from a calm distance and let the ray choose where it goes. Never chase, touch, ride, feed or corner a bat ray. It has one to three venomous spines at the base of the tail, used only in defence, and Wikipedia says it is not considered dangerous unless attacked or frightened. Keep clear of resting rays on the seabed and in shallow bays. Follow local rules and your guide.

Fun fact

Tap the bulb to light it up.

Where you may meet it

Bat ray in the Ocean Atlas

Places we have researched where this animal is recorded. It is never guaranteed, and some places are for watching from the boat only.

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Mexico

United States

Sources for this page

Facts checked 5 October 2026. Photos: Unsplash licence, or Creative Commons as shown on each photo.

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