Dangers and Beauty of the Great Barrier Reef: the Stingray
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The Great Barrier Reef is a great place to visit or take a vacation. Even though it is spectacular and beautiful, there are dangers lurking under the inviting blue waters. Some of the sea life can be unforgiving if you are not careful. One of these creatures is the Stingray, which go by other names 
but we will get to that later.
So hang on, here we go!
First of all let's get into some stats on the stingray; they are carnivores, their lifespan in the wild is fifteen to twenty-five years. Their size full grown is up to two meters (6.5 feet long) and the weight of one who is full grown is up to 350 kg (790 pounds).
The Australian bull ray can reach a weight of about 220 pounds (100 kg). They can be up to 4 feet (1.2 meters) wide and 8 feet (2.4 meters) long. Famed Steve Irwin was killed by a bull ray, when it stabbed him directly in his heart!
There are about 200 species of stingrays, here are a few:
Giant stingarees- (family Plesiobatidae)
Sixgill stingrays- (family Hexatrygoniadae)
Stingarees- (family Urolophidae)
River stingrays- (family Potamotrygonidae)
Whiptail stingrays- (family Dasyatidae)
Butterfly rays- (family Gymnuridae)
Eagle rays- (family Myliobatidae)
Devil rays- (family Mobulidae)
Stingrays live in tropical or warm areas and as the climate gets cooler they move to warmer waters. They are surprisingly not aggressive! They spend time rummaging at the bottom of the sea and they dig in and bury themselves in the sand. They have coloration that blends in with the seafloor, hiding the ray from its predators; larger stingrays or sharks.
Stingrays eat small fish, worms, mollusks, or other small creatures.
Their bodies are flat and are made up of pectoral fins attached to their heads and a trunk with its long tail trailing behind it (this is just one of the things about rays you must look out for). The stingray's spine, or barb, has serrated edges and a sharp point and the underside has venom, and can be fatal to humans. Their spines can remain toxic even after the stingray is dead.
So hang on, here we go!
First of all let's get into some stats on the stingray; they are carnivores, their lifespan in the wild is fifteen to twenty-five years. Their size full grown is up to two meters (6.5 feet long) and the weight of one who is full grown is up to 350 kg (790 pounds).
The Australian bull ray can reach a weight of about 220 pounds (100 kg). They can be up to 4 feet (1.2 meters) wide and 8 feet (2.4 meters) long. Famed Steve Irwin was killed by a bull ray, when it stabbed him directly in his heart!
There are about 200 species of stingrays, here are a few:
Giant stingarees- (family Plesiobatidae)
Sixgill stingrays- (family Hexatrygoniadae)
Stingarees- (family Urolophidae)
River stingrays- (family Potamotrygonidae)
Whiptail stingrays- (family Dasyatidae)
Butterfly rays- (family Gymnuridae)
Eagle rays- (family Myliobatidae)
Devil rays- (family Mobulidae)
Stingrays live in tropical or warm areas and as the climate gets cooler they move to warmer waters. They are surprisingly not aggressive! They spend time rummaging at the bottom of the sea and they dig in and bury themselves in the sand. They have coloration that blends in with the seafloor, hiding the ray from its predators; larger stingrays or sharks.
Stingrays eat small fish, worms, mollusks, or other small creatures.
Their bodies are flat and are made up of pectoral fins attached to their heads and a trunk with its long tail trailing behind it (this is just one of the things about rays you must look out for). The stingray's spine, or barb, has serrated edges and a sharp point and the underside has venom, and can be fatal to humans. Their spines can remain toxic even after the stingray is dead.
