Stingrays: they're wonderful to watch as they fly through the water - but beware when they bury themselves in the sand! - Quick Bits

Stingrays are pancake-shaped fish, and--you'd never guess it--they're close cousins of sharks. The smallest species (kinds) are about the size of a dinner plate. But some 14-foot (4.2-m) stingrays live in the waters near Australia. They might be too big to fit on your bedroom floor. Now that's a big pancake!

Where Are They?

About 170 different species of stingrays live in the oceans around the world. And some live in freshwater too. In South America, a few species swim in the Amazon and other rivers that flow into the Atlantic. One ocean species, the Atlantic stingray, also lives in the St. Johns River in Florida.

What's Up?

A stingray's eyes are on top of its flat body. A special eyelid closes over the top part of each eye in bright light. Next to each eye is a hole. Water flows into the holes and passes over gills, where oxygen is taken from it.

The Flip Side

On the bottom, a stingray has a mouth and nostrils (below). These nostrils are for smelling, not for breathing.

Who Needs Bones?

This fossil of a stingray (right) shows the rods that run through a stingray's fins. The skeletons of rays and sharks are made up of tough, rubbery stuff called cartilage (CAR-tih-lij).

How It Hunts

When water flows into a stingray's nostrils, the ray may pick up the smells of creatures it wants to eat. It can also find prey by sensing the tiny amount of electricity that animals give off.

Slowly, slowly the ray hunts by moving along the ocean or river bottom. When it senses a worm, clam, shrimp, or other creature, it flaps its fins until the prey is uncovered. Then the ray plops down over the prey, sucks it in, and crunches it with its small teeth.

Sneaky Sand Snugglers

A stingray's flat shape helps it hide. It stirs up a cloud of sand by flapping its big, flat fins. When the sand settles down over the ray, everything is covered but its eyes, breathing holes, and sometimes its tail. Even the blue-spotted stingray (far left and back cover)--one of the few rays with bright colors--can hide from enemies that way.

Watch That Tail!

Its tail gave the "sting" to a stingray's name. When a stingray is attacked by an enemy, it whips its tail around. Then a daggerlike stinger releases a powerful poison into the enemy.

When stingrays are on the ocean bottom, it's easy for a diver to step on one by mistake. Then the ray usually stings the person in the ankle (left).

tingrays don't use their tails for hunting prey. And people can usually swim among them without getting hurt. But when the rays are buried under the sand, it's easy to step on one by mistake. If that happens, the ray usually stings the person in the ankle (left). The poison is very painful, and the wound may hurt for a day or two. Worse yet, pieces of the stinger can break off and MDNMinfect the ankle. But stingrays don't chase after prey or people to sting them. In fact, divers can swim among "flocks" of friendly rays without getting hurt.