biostudies-literatureClements ONNWO VENIMAVA Foundatione12894https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC8908892biostudies-literatureUnknown10The pearl whipray <i>Fontitrygon margaritella</i> (Compagno & Roberts, 1984) is a common elasmobranch in coastal western African waters. However, knowledge on their life-history and trophic ecology remains limited. Therefore, we aimed to determine the growth, maturity and diet of <i>F. margaritella</i> from the Bijagós Archipelago in Guinea-Bissau. Growth was modelled with: von Bertalanffy, Gompertz and logistic functions. Model selection revealed no model significantly outperformed another. The sampled age ranged from less than 1 to 7 years (1.8 ± 1.9 cm, mean ± standard deviation) and size (disc width) ranged from 12.2 to 30.6 cm (18.7 ± 5.2 cm). Size-at-maturity was estimated at 20.3 cm (95% CI [18.8-21.8 cm]) for males and 24.3 cm for females (95% CI [21.9-26.5 cm]), corresponding ages of 2.2 and 3.9 years. The diet differed significantly among young-of-the-year (YOY), juveniles and adults (<i>p</i> = 0.001). Diet of all life stages consisted mainly of crustaceans (27.4%, 28.5%, 33.3%) and polychaetes (12.5%, 26.7%, 20.3%), for YOY, juveniles and adults respectively. This study shows that <i>F. margaritella</i> is relatively fast-growing, matures early and experiences ontogenetic diet shifts. These results contribute to status assessments and conservation efforts of <i>F. margaritella</i> and closely related species.PeerJGrowth, maturity, and diet of the pearl whipray (<i>Fontitrygon margaritella</i>) from the Bijagos Archipelago, Guinea-Bissau.PMC8908892NWO.016.VENI.181.087Waders of the BijagósWitbaard RPen IGovers LLVerkuil YILeurs GClements ONfalseGrowth, maturity, and diet of the pearl whipray (<i>Fontitrygon margaritella</i>) from the Bijagos Archipelago, Guinea-Bissau.The pearl whipray <i>Fontitrygon margaritella</i> (Compagno & Roberts, 1984) is a common elasmobranch in coastal western African waters. However, knowledge on their life-history and trophic ecology remains limited. Therefore, we aimed to determine the growth, maturity and diet of <i>F. margaritella</i> from the Bijagós Archipelago in Guinea-Bissau. Growth was modelled with: von Bertalanffy, Gompertz and logistic functions. Model selection revealed no model significantly outperformed another. The sampled age ranged from less than 1 to 7 years (1.8 ± 1.9 cm, mean ± standard deviation) and size (disc width) ranged from 12.2 to 30.6 cm (18.7 ± 5.2 cm). Size-at-maturity was estimated at 20.3 cm (95% CI [18.8-21.8 cm]) for males and 24.3 cm for females (95% CI [21.9-26.5 cm]), corresponding ages of 2.2 and 3.9 years. The diet differed significantly among young-of-the-year (YOY), juveniles and adults (<i>p</i> = 0.001). Diet of all life stages consisted mainly of crustaceans (27.4%, 28.5%, 33.3%) and polychaetes (12.5%, 26.7%, 20.3%), for YOY, juveniles and adults respectively. This study shows that <i>F. margaritella</i> is relatively fast-growing, matures early and experiences ontogenetic diet shifts. These results contribute to status assessments and conservation efforts of <i>F. margaritella</i> and closely related species.2022-01-01T00:00:00Z20222026-05-09T16:28:52.858Z2025-04-05T22:18:01.41ZS-EPMC89088923528227510.7717/peerj.12894