The first fossil record of the genus Benthobatis (Torpediniformes, Narcinidae) from the Miocene Yatsuo Group of Japan

Benthobatis sp., a deep-sea electric ray of Narcinidae (Torpediniformes), is described from the Middle Miocene Yatsuo Group in Central Honshu, Japan. This is the first fossil record of the genus Benthobatis in the world. The occurrence of Benthobatis demonstrates subtropical paleoenvironments in Central Honshu during the early middle Miocene (15.6-15.4 Ma).