A repetitive HindIII fragment of DNA from Raja montagui (Rajiformes) was cloned and sequenced for the first time in cartilaginous fishes. This element, which comprises approximately 5% of the whole genome of the spotted ray, is absent in long tandem arrays, being typical of satellite DNA. It appeared constituted by 311 AT-rich bp (61%). The clone was hybridized to the genomic DNA of species with varying phyletic distances, revealing a high degree of conservation.