They are a small whipray with a sub-oval disc, pointed snout and a uniform dark brown dorsal surface. Outlined with pale margins and a white ventral side. The mid-disc is covered with denticles and has a short tail with a row of spear-shaped thorns (1-3 spines). 

Biology

Length:  It is a very small species, only growing to 32 cm disc width (DW). Born at 7-10 cm DW.

Gestation period: Unknown Littter size:  Although there is no information on litter size, considering the small size, it is probably modest. The frequency of breeding is also not documented. 

Life Expectancy: Unknown

Diet: NA

Habitat and Distribution

Habitat: Demersal on insular and continental shelves, and occasionally found in coastal embayments.

Distribution:It can be found from the Red Sea to western India, including the Persian Gulf, in the Northern Indian Ocean. There is still substantial taxonomic confusion surrounding 'B. walga,' with diverse forms found across its range.

Known landing centres: Royapuram Fishing Harbour, Cuddalore Fishing Harbour, Nagapattinam Fishing Harbour, Malvan, New Ferry Wharf, Veraval, Mangrol, Porbander and Okha.

Depth: Ranges from 0-40 m Commercial Value In India, it is sold locally when landed. However, the smaller individuals caught in the shore seine nets are mostly discarded on the beach. While the larger individuals are taken home for personal consumption or commercially sold. The meat is either sold fresh or dried for human consumption. The skin is sometimes processed and used as leather. 

Threats

The main threat is shallow water trawl fisheries that can catch a large number of individuals. Their occurrence in shallow water also makes them susceptible to coastal development and habitat degradation. Development activities like dredging and reclamation, desalination plants, industrial activities, and habitat destruction due to the removal of shallow productive areas and major shipping lanes are some major threats faced near the Gulf.

References

• Dhanashree Bagade, D. Bagade, & Manas Manjrekar, M. Manjrekar. (0000). Preliminary study on elasmobranch species along the coast of Maharashtra. BIOINFOLET, 18, 473-476.
• Gupta, Trisha & Warde, Kaustubh & Rao, Chetan & Manoharakrishnan, Muralidharan. (2022). Composition and biology of elasmobranchs in the shore seine catches of Malvan, Maharashtra. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of India. 64. 80-83. 10.6024/jmbai.2022.64.2.2257-10.
• Simpfendorfer, Colin A and Moore, Alec B M and Elhassan, I and Owfi, Fereidoon and Akhilesh, K V (2017) Scaly Whipray Brevitrygon walga. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017.