Southern Stingray

Common Name: Southern Stingray
Scientific Name: Dasyatis americana
Range: Atlantic coast: New Jersey to Brazil; Gulf of Mexico; Caribbean
Habitat: Shallow coastal waters
Size: 5 feet / 1.5 meters
Comments: Stingrays are almost rectangular and have long thin tails; they have no dorsal or anal fins. The stingray has a sharp spine at the base of the tail which has venom-secreting tissue in its underside and can inflict serious a wound that may be fatal, even to humans. The stingray wields its tail with great speed and force to drive the spine into its victim.

Stingrays usually live buried in sand on the seabed; they feed on fish, crustaceans and mollusks which they crush with their strong, flattened teeth. The 3 to 5 young of the stingray develop inside the mother and are about 7 in (18 cm) wide at birth. all stingray species have much the same habits.