around the Andaman's reefs is the rays,

and most common of these is the bluespotted stingray.

This stingray's coloration and common name

make it often confused with the more circular blue-spotted stingray

found in the Gulf of Thailand,

which belongs to a different genus.

The bluespotted stingray is found on sandy bottoms

at sites such as East of Eden in the Similans.

The neutral color of the larger Jenkins whipray

camouflages it well against the seabed.

This ray has a pair of sharp and venomous spines near the base of its tail,

and the name whipray comes from the ray's ability to whip it's long tail over fast

and administer a nasty sting to a predator at any part of its circumference.

The ray takes water in through its spiracle, a hole just behind the eye.

This water can be blown out through the mouth

to excavate food from the substrate.

Another large stingray common to the area is the blotched fantail ray.

This impressive species can grow nearly 2 meters in diameter

and is often one of the highlights of dives in the Andaman.

Blotched fantail rays are most impressive when they aggregate in shoals.

Occasionally they can be witnessed in large numbers.

I encountered this shoal of some 30 individuals at Black Rock.

They had possibly gathered to mate.

Another visitor to Black Rock and other deep-water sites

is the spotted eagle ray.