Neotrygon picta Last & White, 2008

Speckled Maskray

Neotrygon picta Last & White, 2008: 316, Figs 1 –4. Holotype: CSIRO H 5771-01. Type locality: east pf Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia.

Local synonymy: Neotrygon kuhldi— Filewood, 1973 (in part): 13 (PNG; misspelling of kuhlii). Neotrygon picta —Last & Stevens, 2009: 455 (possibly southern New Guinea); Last et al., 2016a: 591 (southern PNG); White et al., 2018: 242, figs (PNG).

PNG voucher material: (3 spec.) CSIRO H 7799-01, female 200 mm DW, west of Oriomo River, Western Province, 9°4’26.04” S, 143°8’31.9” E, 26 Oct. 2014; KFRS E.759, juvenile male 140 mm DW, east of Fly River mouth, Gulf of Papua, 8°37’59” S, 144°5′23” E, 8–9 m depth, 13 Dec. 2014; USNM 218544, female 260 mm DW, east side of Daru wharf, Daru, Western Province, 10 Oct. 1975.

Remarks: Filewood (1973) lists N. kuhldi from PNG and mentions two forms, i.e. “either pale with speckles and usually few blue spots, or marbled with dark speckles (possibly 2 species)”; the marbled species likely refers to this species.