Stingrays: How Dangerous Are They and How to Avoid Getting Stung

Whenever visiting Florida or any area bordering the Gulf of Mexico, it is not uncommon to encounter a stingray, a mildly dangerous sea creature. Chances are that if you are bathing in the ocean, it is highly likely that you will see a stingray in any of these areas.

Poisonous sea creatures such as stingrays like to hang out in the underwater areas very close to the shoreline, or right where the dry beach sand meets the water line, regardless of the sea level. Stingrays are typically medium to dark brown in color; some people refer to them as "sand-colored" in hue, which surely helps them to camouflage in shallow waters. They average about 6 inches in body width, give or take a few increments, and are quite flat from top to bottom. When they reach maturity, they can get to be fairly long, especially when one measures their stinger and attached tail.

To be fair, this species of poisonous sea life is a type of mildly dangerous sea creature. Even so, the stingers from this unique category of fish can be very harmful to humans and scientists have found them to sometimes paralyze the small fish that they prey upon for food. According to the Sherpa Guides, a sting from a stingray is fatal enough to stop the heart of a small dog. Stingrays aren't as deadly in most cases to humans but people with heart or respiratory problems should be particularly alert and careful when swimming or wading in the Gulf of Mexico beaches.

The thought of getting stung by a stingray is definitely scary and if it actually does happen, can be extremely painful. Fortunately, though, despite the many warnings you might hear during your travels along the Gulf of Mexico, stingrays are what you might call down to earth, easygoing creatures. More specifically, these so called dangerous sea creatures are not by nature aggressive. And even more specifically, to get to the point everyone really wants to know, stingrays for the most part only sting humans by accident. They rarely just attack.