New evidence confirms the presence of the diamond stingray Hypanus dipterurus (Jordan & Gilbert 1880) in Chile and extends its southern range.

Abstract

The diamond stingray (Hypanus dipterurus) is a species of cartilaginous fish that, according to the IUCN, is globally in a vulnerable state of conservation and its populations show a decline. New records of this ray species in southern Peru and northern Chile have expanded their known range. The species is distributed in the Eastern Central Pacific, from southern California to San Andres, on the central coast of Peru, but is poorly known in Chile. Angler records mined from social media and historical data confirmed the presence of H. dipterurus along southern Peru and northern Chile, extending southward over 1250 km. A species distribution model (SDM) based on previous global occurrences combined with oceanographic layers was built to identify areas of potential and undocumented presence of H. dipterurus. The SDM showed high accuracy (area under the curve = 0.95) and predicted the potential presence of H. dipterurus along vast areas of the Peruvian and Chilean coasts, where the presence of the species was poorly documented. Comprehensive surveys are required to understand the distribution, population dynamics, habitat requirements, and threats to effective conservation efforts in the southern region of its distribution range.