Australian Eagle Ray

Myliobatis tenuicaudatus

Sharks and rays
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth2–58 m
Water temperature14–28 °C
Best monthsSeptember, October, and November
How commonCommon

About this species

The New Zealand eagle ray or Australian eagle ray is an eagle ray of the family Myliobatidae, found in bays, estuaries, and near rocky reefs around New Zealand and southern Australia on the inner continental shelf. It is a common species and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".

Text from the Wikipedia article “New Zealand eagle ray”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 305 records
February: 277 records
March: 268 records
April: 136 records
May: 183 records
June: 137 records
July: 88 records
August: 120 records
September: 587 records
October: 629 records
November: 619 records
December: 416 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 2–58 m · Deepest record: 1,183 m

0–10 m: 961 records
10–20 m: 343 records
20–30 m: 380 records
30–40 m: 289 records
40–50 m: 197 records
50–60 m: 180 records
60–70 m: 95 records
70–80 m: 33 records
80–90 m: 27 records
90–100 m: 5 records
100–110 m: 13 records
110+ m: 56 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 14–28 °C

12–14 °C: 19 records
14–16 °C: 33 records
16–18 °C: 174 records
18–20 °C: 299 records
20–22 °C: 81 records
22–24 °C: 4 records
24–26 °C: 113 records
26–28 °C: 1 records

Names and classification

English: Australian Eagle Ray, New Zealand Eagle Ray, Southern Eagle Ray

Other scientific names: Myliobatis tenuicandatus, Myliobatis tenuicaudatis, Myliobatus tentuicaudatus

Similar species

Common eagle ray
Myliobatis aquila
Hamlyn's Bull-ray
Myliobatis hamlyni
Japanese Eagle Ray
Myliobatis tobijei
Myliobatis australis
Bull ray
Aetomylaeus bovinus
Ornate eagle ray
Aetomylaeus vespertilio

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
5,626 open-data records from 1886 to 2020.
Species data updated November 4, 2026.

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