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Atlantic Stingray The
Atlantic Stingray is a common North American fish found along the
Gulf of Mexico and south‑eastern Atlantic coasts, ranging as
far north as the Chesapeake Bay, and as far south as Central
America. It is a broad, flat, cartilaginous fish belonging to the
same class as sharks and skates.
It
has no distinct head and its eyes are found on top of the body. The
snout is blunt, but slightly pointed, and large pectoral fins on its
sides make it a graceful swimmer. Stingrays have relatively slender
"whip" like tails armed with a venomous barb. This is used
for defense and can inflict a serious wound on humans. The wingspan can reach 2m across on the larger fish; however,
males are noticeably smaller than females. |
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The stingray lives in
shallow bays, sounds, and in-shore waters where sandy bottoms are
abundant. It feeds primarily on mollusks and crustaceans for which
it burrows in the sand, and on small fish. Sharks feed on stingrays,
minus the barbed tail. Frequently, stingrays lie buried in the sand and use their barbed tail to protect themselves from danger from above. However, they are not aggressive and will flee from danger whenever possible. When swimming, Stingrays are not capable of directing their tail and are therefore rather defenseless. |
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