Heart-shaped smooth disc, slender leg-like anterior pelvic lobes, pointed snout filament and no dorsal fins. Marine soft bottoms on outer shelf and slope,183–915 m.
Wildlife education
This record supports wildlife education. Aquarium-care questions are not assigned to this profile.
Wildlife education profile; reviewed natural-history sources do not establish a captive operating protocol.
Wildlife reference; no home-aquarium stocking recommendation or validated captive operating protocol is supplied. Public-aquarium photographs document living animals, not suitability for private keeping.
Outstanding care evidence
- Institutional lifetime husbandry and veterinary protocol
Identification
Heart-shaped smooth disc, slender leg-like anterior pelvic lobes, pointed snout filament and no dorsal fins.
Names and Classification
Accepted genus Schroederobatis; Anacanthobatis americana is historical combination. Also published under Anacanthobatis americana.
Adult Size
Institutional account reports 38 cm total length; conflicting 40 cm disc-width reports require checking.
Distribution and Habitat
Western Atlantic: southern Caribbean and northern South America, including Hispaniola and Honduras to Suriname. Marine soft bottoms on outer shelf and slope,183–915 m.
Feeding and Ecological Role
Species-specific diet unverified. Poorly known marine deepwater skate; encounter rates and post-capture survival uncertain.
Reproduction and Life History
Egg-laying skate; species-specific egg production, maturity and incubation largely unverified.
Conservation
Least Concern (IUCN global; 2021 amended global assessment of 2020 assessment; assessed 24 June 2019.). Global category; regional management and legal protection are separate. Older species accounts may retain superseded categories.
Responsible Observation
Observe without chasing, feeding, touching or obstructing the animal. Keep fins and equipment off resting rays and sharks; give sawfishes and wedgefishes room to move. Follow the site’s local wildlife rules and use responsible dive operators.
About the Photographs
No freely reusable photograph of a verified living specimen was found in this search. The target of at least three photographs remains unmet. Dead or preserved specimens, drawings and uncertain identifications were excluded.
Aquarium Suitability
Wildlife education only. This marine elasmobranch is outside home-aquarium stocking and care guidance. Wild range and diet are not a captive operating protocol; this profile does not infer tank dimensions, water settings, acquisition advice or an institutional welfare plan.
Evidence Gaps
Evidence gaps include: Longevity, diet, fecundity, abundance and geographic population structure.
A living record
Natural history, taxonomy and global conservation categories checked against the linked sources. Habitat measurements are not captive care settings. Each photograph has separate identity, living-status and rights evidence. Public content last reviewed October 17, 2026.
- Smithsonian STRI ↗Reference source
- IUCN global assessment ↗Conservation authority
- Shark-References — species and taxonomic synonyms ↗Reference source