I was walking out through the shallow water this morning, and I stepped on some sort of fish--I could see something flat and dark swimming away, on the bottom. I thought maybe it was a flounder. A few minutes later, I saw a stingray swimming away, out to sea. The water was really clear and it was definitely a stingray, I could see the long tail. Now, according to my Audubon Field Guide to the Southeastern States, this thing has "strong flat teeth to crush crabs" and a poisonous spine near the base of its tail. So, how dangerous are these things? Has anyone had any encounters with them? Been stung? Bitten?
skates I dont think you have too much to worry about, there pretty docile creatures. If you see one, dont panic and start kicking . they'll come back to check it out. Theres two different kinds.. "skates" manta rays, which are really harmless, they brown on top. The sting rays are mostly grey topped, and they are the one in your book description. Just chill and they'll go away. Its the least of your worries out there. Its been a spring full of em, you'll see in schools sometimes. They'll jump out of the water or the wave. Pretty cool to see. Freak you out at the same time too!
they aren't always stingrays. it could be a skate. skates dont have barbs and will not hurt you. but, a stingray's barb will inter and slowly move its way in. it sort of keeps pushing its self further in long after the stingray is gone. if this happens you should go to the emergency room asap. dont try to pull the barb out or you will be like Steve irwin the crocodile hunter.. there is also one more very dangerous ray called the spotted eagle ray( the one that killed steve). they will jump in the air about 8 feet. there have been many people stung by a spotted eagle ray. i attached a few examples. the first is a stingray the second is a clearnose skate the third is a spotted eagle ray
Yeah, it was definitely the stingray that I saw; it was grey, not brown like the skate. Hopefully that spotted eagle ray that killed Steve Irwin isn't found around NC. I just stayed calm and kept sponging. There have been a lot of creatures bumping into me out there lately, jellyfish, fish, crabs, now this thing. I'm getting used to it now, not screaming as much as I was at first.
Thanks for the info. I keep seeing skates in the water and was worried that they were stingrays, but they were all brown. I have seen a lot of jellyfish washed up on shore with the tentacles cut off. Any ideas?
Those spotted eagle rays are pretty crazy http://news.aol.com/story/_a/stingray-leaps-onto-boat-kills-woman/20080320132409990001 I'm sorry, but that story kind of makes me think of the Dane Cook bit about the woman who died from getting hit in the face with a tire or bees or something like that.
If the jellyfish are pretty round shaped with no tenticles, they are called cannonball jelly's...They dont have tenticles and are harmless to humans its the sea nettles and man-o-wars you have to look out for, but you still have a little while before you start to see them
yea the cannonballs are harmless...the mani's are the ones you need to start watching out for come late july and august....they are blue and look like little tiny bubble gum bubbles floating on top of the water...there tenticles can be really long so watch out (you wont be able to see the tenticles). I got hit by one in HHI last september and it put me on my ass for 2 days...didnt go to the hospital but it rocked me hard. left a nasty scar on my leg.
the spotted eagle ray are in north carolina. i have had to pull one out of a boat before. im not sure how far north they go but i do know they are here
last year around october i was paddling on a 5'10 with my feet obviously dangling off the end of the board. paddled right through what i believe was a manowar. worst pain in my life, turned my ankle blue around the area where i got stung. luckily it only got my foot tho not my body. and i thought those big round jellyfish with the short stubby tenticles did hurt you? they look like they're tenticles have been chopped off..are those cannonballs? i thought it was cabbageheads that didn't sting you.
when you paddled past the man'o'war.... did you see the blue balloon lookin thing with a fin on top??????!
i didn't see anything. i was paddling kinda diagnol to get to my friends and it felt like my foot went through barbed wire or like a fiery bush. had tenticle marcs all over my foot for 2-3 weeks and a big scabby thing on my ankle that occasionaly leaked pus. very grose. the doc said it was the equivalent to a second degree burn
