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Stingrays are a group of sea rays, a type of cartilaginous fish.They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae (sixgill stingray), Plesiobatidae (deepwater stingray), Urolophidae (stingarees), Urotrygonidae (round rays), Dasyatidae (whiptail stingrays), Potamotrygonidae (river stingrays), Gymnuridae (butterfly rays ...
Stingrays generally do not attack aggressively or even actively defend themselves. When threatened, their primary reaction is to swim away. When threatened, their primary reaction is to swim away. However, when attacked by predators or stepped on, the stinger in their tail is whipped up.
Stingrays can vary vastly in size ranging from several inches to several feet in length and weigh hundreds of pounds. They are bottom-dwelling cartilaginous fish, meaning they are made of ...
A known parasite of freshwater Atlantic stingrays is Argulus, a fish louse that feeds on skin mucus. [3] Despite having a regular freshwater presence, the Atlantic stingray is physiologically euryhaline and no population has evolved the specialized osmoregulatory mechanisms found in the river stingrays of the family Potamotrygonidae.
For over a hundred million years, the stingray has roamed the world's oceans as an almost mythological animal: extraordinarily graceful, yet potentially lethal.
Well-documented since classical antiquity, the common stingray was known as trygon (τρυγών) to the ancient Greeks and as pastinaca to the ancient Romans. [2] [3] An old common name for this species, used in Great Britain since at least the 18th century, is "fire-flare" or "fiery-flare", which may refer to the reddish color of its meat.
Worried about getting stung by a jellyfish at the beach? Here's how to navigate the worst-case scenario.
Southern stingrays are nocturnal predators, who spray water from their mouths or flap their fins vigorously to disturb the substrate and expose hidden prey. This bottom-dwelling species is often found singly or in pairs, and can reach population densities estimated up to 245 per square kilometre (630/sq mi) in certain shallow systems thought to ...