Received: 18 December 2018 Revised: 15 March 2019 Accepted: 16 March 2019 DOI: 10.1002/jmor.20984 RESEARCH ARTICLE Killing them softly: Ontogeny of jaw mechanics and stiffness in mollusk-feeding freshwater stingrays Kelsi M. Rutledge1,2 | Adam P. Summers1 | Matthew A. Kolmann3,4,1 1Department of Biology, Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington, Friday Abstract Harbor, Washington Durophagous predators consume hard-shelled prey such as bivalves, gastropods, and 2 Department of Ecology and Evolutionary large crustaceans, typically by crushing the mineralized exoskeleton. This is costly Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, California from the point of view of the bite forces involved, handling times, and the stresses 3Department of Biological Sciences, George inflicted on the predator's skeleton. It is not uncommon for durophagous taxa to dis- Washington University, Washington, D.C. play an ontogenetic shift from softer to harder prey items, implying that it is relatively 4Department of Ichthyology, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Ontario difficult for smaller animals to consume shelled prey. Batoid fishes (rays, skates, sawfishes, and guitarfishes) have independently evolved durophagy multiple times, Correspondence Kelsi M. Rutledge, Department of Ecology and despite the challenges associated with crushing prey harder than their own cartilagi- Evolutionary Biology, University of California nous skeleton. Potamotrygon leopoldi is a durophagous freshwater ray endemic to the Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095. Email:
[email protected]; Xingu River in Brazil, with a jaw morphology superficially similar to its distant
[email protected] durophagous marine relatives, eagle rays (e.g., Aetomylaeus, Aetobatus). We used sec- Present address ond moment of area as a proxy for the ability to resist bending and analyzed the Kelsi M.