User:GirlfromOregon11/Golden cownose ray

'''For this project, I plan to add more information to the article as it is very short and not as detailed as it could be. Similarly, I think broadening the perspectives that cow nose rays are analyzed in will help the publics view of species conservation overall, not just for rays. The addition of case studies and scientific information will give the article more validity and provide the public with more information that is important to the behavior and growth of cow nose rays. I will most likely break the article into sections such as behavior, feeding, social impacts, etc.'''

'''Kolmann, M. A., Huber, D. R., Motta, P. J., & Grubbs, R. D. (2015). Feeding biomechanics of the cownose ray, Rhinoptera bonasus, over ontogeny. Journal of Anatomy, 227(3), 341–351. https://doi.org/10.1111/joa.12342 '''

-article discusses the anatomy and bodily functions of cow nose rays. They also discuss the environmental influences that cause these evolutionary changes and how this impacts their social behaviors.

-I plan to use this source as a way to develop more information about the anatomy and also to discuss the behaviors of cow nose rays

'Smith, J.W., Merriner, J.V. Age and growth, movements and distribution of the cownose ray,Rhinoptera bonasus'', in Chesapeake Bay. Estuaries 10, 153–164 (1987). https://doi.org/10.2307/1352180 '''

-article discusses distribution of cow nose rays in correlation to feeding behaviors and age ranges. The distribution is specifically observed throughout the Chesapeake bay and Gulf of Mexico, but can explain behaviors throughout oceans given the environment.

-I plan to use this article to expand the discussion on where cow nose rays migrate and where they stay depending on food and life succession.

'''Ajemian, M. J., & Powers, S. P. (2012). Habitat-specific feeding by cownose rays (Rhinoptera bonasus) of the northern Gulf of Mexico. Environmental Biology of Fishes, 95(1), 79–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-011-9858-3 '''

-article discusses the feeding habits of cow nose rays, specifically identifying specific behaviors that stem from environmental factors. Similarly, article points out the differences among diets between young and adult rays and what this means in terms of ecosystem functions.

-I plan to use this article in compliment with the Kolmann et al. article where the information about the rays feeding habits will have a more environmental role rather than an anatomical role.

'''Bangley, C. W., Edwards, M. L., Mueller, C., Fisher, R. A., Aguilar, R., Heggie, K., Richie, K., Ahr, B. J., & Ogburn, M. B. (2021). Environmental associations of cownose ray (rhinoptera bonasus) seasonal presence along the U.S. Atlantic Coast. Ecosphere, 12(9). https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3743 '''

-article discusses the environmental factors that drive the different behaviors of cow nose rays. The article points out how these factors can influence different management and conservation policies in which add difficulty to study the species.

-I plan to use this article to add new information about the human impact on the species and use this to identify any limitations on population growth or safety of species overall given their endangered species listing.

'''Abraham Gabriel, A., Yee-Nin, S. T., Adamu, L., Hassan, H. M. D., & Wahid, A. H. (2018). Enucleation in a Cownose Ray (Rhinoptera bonasus). Case Reports in Veterinary Medicine, 2018, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/5048948 '''

-article discusses the types of trauma cow nose rays experience, specifically during feeding and mating seasons. The article provides a study on treated rays in which they utilize different medical knowledge to heal injured rays and how they responded to treatment.

-I plan to use this article as a way to bring awareness to the various types of injuries that cow nose rays experience during seasons with the highest social tensions. This can be used with the articles about behavior as well as other articles about human impact and how our role in species conservation has been significant from two extreme perspectives.

Goals for 3/27/23

 * Outline specific categories to add organization to article
 * Clarify jargon used ( ovoviviparity, fecundity)

Outline for 3/27/23

 * Include sections: Habitat/ Habitat Loss, Anatomy, and Human Impacts (?)
 * Clear up jargon:


 * 1) Ovoviviparity- internal fertilization where the young are born alive without placental connection (from wiki article)
 * 2) Fecundity- Ability to produce offspring (Wildlife Medical Clinic . (n.d.). Wildlife encounters: Keywords. University of Illinois. https://vetmed.illinois.edu/wildlifeencounters/grade9_12/lesson2/keywords.html )

Habitat/ Habitat Loss

- use some info from original article, expand with info about patterns in distribution. (Smith, J.W., Merriner, J.V. Age and growth, movements and distribution of the cownose ray,Rhinoptera bonasus, in Chesapeake Bay. Estuaries 10, 153–164 (1987). https://doi.org/10.2307/1352180 )

- use this section to identify feeding behaviors as connected to their environment. ( Smith, J.W., Merriner, J.V. Age and growth, movements and distribution of the cownose ray,Rhinoptera bonasus, in Chesapeake Bay. Estuaries 10, 153–164 (1987). https://doi.org/10.2307/1352180 ) and  (Ajemian, M. J., & Powers, S. P. (2012). Habitat-specific feeding by cownose rays (Rhinoptera bonasus) of the northern Gulf of Mexico. Environmental Biology of Fishes, 95(1), 79–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-011-9858-3 )

- include pieces about env. changes they experience and how it affects their behaviors. (Bangley, C. W., Edwards, M. L., Mueller, C., Fisher, R. A., Aguilar, R., Heggie, K., Richie, K., Ahr, B. J., & Ogburn, M. B. (2021). Environmental associations of cownose ray (rhinoptera bonasus) seasonal presence along the U.S. Atlantic Coast. Ecosphere, 12(9). https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3743 )

Anatomy

- expand on some info included in the original article. This is where ill clear up some of the jargon used in original article too. discuss more on evolutionary anatomy and connections with env. changes. (Kolmann, M. A., Huber, D. R., Motta, P. J., & Grubbs, R. D. (2015). Feeding biomechanics of the cownose ray, Rhinoptera bonasus, over ontogeny. Journal of Anatomy, 227(3), 341–351. https://doi.org/10.1111/joa.12342) -- find related sources to expand ideas 

- highlight the trauma experienced and what this means for cownose ray populations. (Abraham Gabriel, A., Yee-Nin, S. T., Adamu, L., Hassan, H. M. D., & Wahid, A. H. (2018). Enucleation in a Cownose Ray (Rhinoptera bonasus). Case Reports in Veterinary Medicine, 2018, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/5048948 )

Human Impacts

- expand on info in original article. include info about how policy affects cownose ray populations and what we do to conserve species. (Bangley, C. W., Edwards, M. L., Mueller, C., Fisher, R. A., Aguilar, R., Heggie, K., Richie, K., Ahr, B. J., & Ogburn, M. B. (2021). Environmental associations of cownose ray (rhinoptera bonasus) seasonal presence along the U.S. Atlantic Coast. Ecosphere, 12(9). https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3743 )

- include some research being done to help the species and why it is important for us to act. (Abraham Gabriel, A., Yee-Nin, S. T., Adamu, L., Hassan, H. M. D., & Wahid, A. H. (2018). Enucleation in a Cownose Ray (Rhinoptera bonasus). Case Reports in Veterinary Medicine, 2018, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/5048948) -- find related sources to expand ideas 

Article Draft
Anatomy:

Golden cownose rays feed on similar foods throughout their development. Their prey tend to include species such as gastropods, bivalves, and crustaceans. Observing the relationship between predator and prey is significant due to the type of animals the cownose rays prey on. Gastropods, bivalves, and crustaceans have tough outer shells that are difficult to break, especially for young marine species like the golden cownose ray. Due to the hard outer shell of the rays prey, cow nose rays have evolved to have structured jaws that have intense biting strength and the ability to break down that shell. Cownose rays have physical traits such as grinding tooth plates, porous bones that allow for jaw flexibility, and muscles that balance the bite strength between each side of the jaw. An article discussing the feeding mechanics of cow nose rays highlights the features of the jaw that make the anatomy of cownose rays so unique. The authors observed the anatomy of a sample of cow nose rays of many ages and utilized models to generally predict bite strength. They found that as the rays develop, the stronger their bite will be. A stronger bite suggests a better chance of survival through optimal feeding and predatory behaviors. Another point made by the authors was that they hypothesized the rays jaw development to happen faster than the rest of the body, making the argument that young cownose rays develop about half of their jaw strength by their first year of life. (Kolmann et al. 2015)

As for other parts of anatomy, cow nose rays have a special kind of cartilage that helps them move smoothly within the water. Hyaline cartilage is found along the vertebrae and allows for quick and flexible movements. From the observations found in an article about the development of cow nose rays, the authors explain that as a ray grows and develops, the more hyaline cartilage they will form. Looking more into development among sex, the study found that females tend to develop quicker than males. However, males overall reached their predicted size faster than females. (Smith and Merriner, 1987)

As the evolution of physical characteristics are important, it is also important to acknowledge common injuries that occur to the rays. Aside from human caused injuries, cow nose rays typically receive damage to the eyes and snout. An article discussing the physical trauma cows rays experience explains that these injuries are typically due to male aggression during the mating season or if the rays are captive and improperly taken care of. In the snout specifically, cow nose rays have receptors that help them touch and smell to find prey. Injuries to the snout and eyes are especially important as it prevents their success to survive. (Abraham et al. 2018)

“Characterized by a slow life history including late maturity and low fecundity” (Bangely et al. 2021)

Habitat/ Feeding Habits:

Golden cow nose rays feed on similar foods throughout their development. Their prey tend to include species such as gastropods, bivalves, and crustaceans. Observing the relationship between predator and prey is significant due to the type of animals the cow nose rays prey on. Gastropods, bivalves, and crustaceans have tough outer shells that are difficult to break, especially for young marine species like the golden cow nose ray. (Kolmann et al. 2015)

A study conducted on the habitat specific feeding habits of cow nose rays, the authors surveyed two areas: the Gulf of Mexico and Chesapeake Bay. Within these two habitats, they found that cow nose rays tend to rely on bivalves for their food source due to their uniformity in size. This makes it easy for the rays to have reliant and consistent feeding, especially during peak migration periods. Ajemian and Powers study shows the implications of feeding habits. For example, since the rays movement is dependent on the available prey, the authors suggest that more productive areas would benefit juvenile rays as they provide more food and safety for proper development. In adults, they found that they tend to ingest prey that are larger in size and have thicker shells. Through this observation, the authors explained that this prey type is associated with waters that have a higher salinity. (Ajemian and Powers, 2012)

Along with feeding connections, mating season has a significant impact on the location of rays given the time of year. From an article discussing the environmental associations of cow nose rays, they found that there is a difference in migration times between sex. The authors identified mating season to start around late April/ early may and end late September/early October. Females were found to arrive to the mating sites about two weeks earlier than the males, and stay the entire duration of the mating season. Males, however, only stayed about two months and was motivated by by different internal cues than the females. Along with internal cues (created by hormones), The authors found that there are many external cues that determine how far the rays were able to migrate. Some factors include sea surface temperature, time of the year, and hours of sunlight per day. The authors highlight that the range of temperature tolerance for this species is unknown, but there was an observed preference for temperatures below 30 degrees C. (Bangley et al. 2021)

Human Impacts:

When looking at the human impacts to the cow nose ray population, there are many ways we can implement change. Looking at population change specifically, the main influences to a declining cow nose ray population is overexploitation. One way to combat this is by understanding the rays behavior and implementing changes that allow for the species to thrive. The species tend to remove themselves from an area if it exhibits intolerable activity and conditions. Understanding the consequences of climate change and rising sea temperatures will provide awareness of the impact it has on populations that are sensitive to change like the cow nose rays. (Bangley et al. 2021)

Trophic cascades play a significant role in the population dynamic of species. In terms of understanding why the rays behave the way they do, focusing on how they interact with other species is a key identifier of any issues within the ecosystem. The more we take from their prey source, the more susceptible they are to feeding problems. This creates an imbalance within an ecosystem, where there is no form of “checks and balances” that keep the populations within carrying capacity. Fisheries have a large role in the cataclysm of tropic cascades, where our industry focuses on quantity over quality and tend to ignore any environmental cues that suggest potential growth or damage. (Ajemian and Powers, 2012)

Finally, the research we do is important to understanding how we can help populations grow overall. Understanding the anatomy and the proper way of healing injuries can provide a new perspective on population growth. Even in a domestic way, the proper care and assistance to the species can allow more education and action to encourage a stable population. (Abraham et al. 2018)