The bentfin devil ray (Mobula thurstoni) is a migratory elasmobranch species with a wide distribution range. Despite the recent increase in mobulid research, critical habitats and home ranges are still being identified for these threatened species. In the present study, photo and video records opportunistically gathered by SCUBA diving effort were used to identify individuals and habitat usage by M. thurstoni in a marine protected area in the western equatorial Atlantic Ocean, Fernando de Noronha Archipelago (FNA). The bentfin devil ray was identified in five distinct records, in different years and sites around the archipelago. All the males showed developed claspers, suggesting mature individuals using the area. The UNESCO heritage site of FNA is considered an area of high biological importance, containing essential habitats for several species of fish, turtles and marine mammals. However, habitat usage by devil ray species is poorly reported in the region; therefore, the present study presents the first report of M. thurstoni at FNA, which adds the fifth mobulid ray species recorded in the region. Additionally, these results correspond to the second record of living specimens of M. thurstoni in Brazilian jurisdictional waters, highlighting new information on the species’ distribution and the home range of mobulids in Brazil.

条鳍魔鬼鱼（Mobula thurstoni）是一种迁徙性的软骨鱼种，分布范围很广。尽管最近对 mobulid 的研究有所增加，但仍在为这些受威胁物种确定关键栖息地和栖息地。在本研究中，通过 SCUBA 潜水努力偶然收集的照片和视频记录被用来识别M. thurstoni的个体和栖息地使用情况在西赤道大西洋的一个海洋保护区费尔南多·德·诺罗尼亚群岛 (FNA)。在五种不同的记录中，在群岛周围的不同年份和地点发现了本鳍魔鬼鱼。所有雄性都表现出发达的扣子，表明成熟的个体使用该区域。FNA 的联合国教科文组织遗产被认为是一个具有高度生物重要性的区域，其中包含多种鱼类、海龟和海洋哺乳动物的基本栖息地。然而，该地区很少有关于魔鬼鱼物种栖息地使用情况的报道；因此，本研究在 FNA 提供了M. thurstoni的第一份报告，其中增加了该地区记录的第五种 mobulid ray 物种。此外，这些结果对应于M. thurstoni活体标本的第二次记录在巴西管辖水域，重点介绍了有关该物种分布和巴西 mobulids 家庭范围的新信息。