Baby Bat Rays Enjoy a Lovely Underwater Sushi Meal

A surprisingly adorable group of bat ray pups enjoyed a lovely meal of raw salmon and other sustainable fish at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California. According to their keepers, the pups are able to chew through the tough flesh with plate-like teeth.

Bat ray teeth are fused into plates that can crush the strongest clam shells. The rays crush the entire clam, or other molluscs, inside their mouths, spit out the shells, and then eat the soft, fleshy parts. If a tooth breaks or wears out, a new one replaces it. Rays grow new teeth continuously, like their shark kin.

Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.