Many ray species are threatened with extinction, and so understanding their movement and habitat use is vital for developing effective management and conservation efforts. Globally, rays are known to rely on estuarine habitats, but estuary use by rays has not yet been investigated in South Africa. Thirty-three diamond rays Gymnura natalensis and 25 bull rays Aetomylaeus bovinus, both species anecdotally recorded to occur in estuaries, were acoustically tagged. Individuals were tracked using a nation-wide network of receivers in South Africa, the Acoustic Tracking Array Platform (ATAP), that has acoustic receivers in both marine and estuarine environments. Only six rays (4 diamond and 2 bull rays) were recorded using estuaries, but they displayed seasonal philopatry, returning to specific estuaries during spring to autumn months (September to May) for up to 6 consecutive years. Due to a number of rays entering the Breede Estuary, the fine-scale habitat use in this ecosystem was investigated. Marine-estuarine connectivity was significantly influenced by marine temperatures. Additionally, presence in the upper parts of the Breede Estuary (up to 17 km from the mouth) was influenced by temperature, tides and time of day. Findings suggest estuaries are an important, and previously overlooked, habitat type for a portion of the diamond and bull ray populations on the south coast of South Africa, which has management and conservation implications.

许多鳐鱼物种面临灭绝的威胁，因此了解它们的运动和栖息地利用对于开展有效的管理和保护工作至关重要。在全球范围内，众所周知，鳐鱼依赖河口栖息地，但南非尚未对鳐鱼利用河口的情况进行调查。33 条钻石魟Gymnura natalensis和 25 条公牛魟Aetomylaeus bovinus，据传闻，这两个物种都出现在河口，并被标记为声学标签。使用南非全国范围的接收器网络——声学跟踪阵列平台（ATAP）对个体进行跟踪，该平台在海洋和河口环境中都有声学接收器。仅在河口记录到了 6 条鳐鱼（4 条菱形鳐鱼和 2 条牛鳐鱼），但它们表现出季节性的觅食行为，在春季至秋季（九月至五月）期间连续 6 年返回特定河口。由于大量鳐鱼进入布里德河口，因此对该生态系统的精细栖息地利用进行了调查。海洋与河口的连通性受到海洋温度的显着影响。此外，布里德河口上部（距河口最远 17 公里）的存在受到温度、潮汐和一天中时间的影响。