Mobula hypostoma This smaller eagle ray looks like its cousins, with its diamond-shaped pectoral disc that is twice as wide as it is long, and its dark gray black top and ivory white underside. But the Atlantic devil ray is smaller, growing to only about 48 inches wide, and its long tail lacks a
Danger to Humans Rays in general are considered harmless and inoffensive.
Taeniura lymma This smaller ray (12 to 14 inches across) has an oval pectoral disc that is usually yellow to brown to olive-green and scattered with blue spots on top, and white underneath. It looks a lot like the bluespotted stingray, but this ray is much rounder and has a noticeably thicker tai
Danger to Humans Bluespotted ribbontail rays are often shy, swimming away when approached
About 100 million years ago, a group of trendsetting moths started flying during the day rather than at night, taking advantage of nectar-rich flowers that had co-evolved with bees. This single event led to the evolution of all butterflies. Scientists have known the precise timing of this event s
Life on Earth Unique dove species is the dodo of the Caribbean and in similar danger
Pomoxis nigromaculatus Crappies are a popular game fish and prized as a food source, so their original range of the Eastern US has been artificially expanded by stocking lakes, ponds, and rivers across the mainland US. The black crappie looks very similar to the white crappie except that it has m
Danger to Humans The black crappie is omnivorous, and without predators around they
Hydrolagus colliei This smooth, scale-less chimaera can grow to 24 inches long, a good deal of which is the long tail. It’s named for its brown-gray iridescent coloring, spotted with white. It has a short, rabbit-like face, large triangular pectoral fins, and a short dorsal fin that starts with a
Danger to Humans Although not considered dangerous to humans, care should be taken
Torpedo marmorata This solitary coastal ray has electric organs on its pectoral disc that can stun a human or kill a fish. It is pale brown with dark brown mottling, and has two small dorsal fins on its stout tail near its large caudal fin. Usually it can be found on muddy or sandy bottoms of
Danger to Humans A large adult marbled electric ray can deliver a painful and stunning
Hypanus americanus These diamond-shaped rays are olive-brown to green-grey on top and creamy white underneath. Their pectoral fins can grow up to a total width of 79 inches, which they use to stir up the sandy ocean floor to either reveal crustaceans and small fish, or bury themselves to hide fro
Danger to Humans The southern stingray is a non-aggressive animal, posing little
Like many other white Americans, after the murder of George Floyd, I felt the immediate need to do something, anything to better understand and ultimately dismantle systemic racism. Many amazing books, documentaries, and podcasts have already been recommended across social media and if you Google “b
Many of this collection’s poets remind us of the danger or futility of drawing
2024 was an exceptionally calm year for shark bites. Worldwide, there were only 47 unprovoked attacks, down 22 from the previous year and well below the 10-year average of 70. Four of last year’s attacks resulted in fatalities, also a significant reduction from recent years. The International Sha
Pregnant females often navigate upstream, where there are fewer predators that pose a danger
Dipturus laevis These long-lived, slow-growing skates have diamond shaped pectoral discs with very pointed snouts and stout tails. They are reddish brown on top, with dark spots, dark blotches and light streaks; and they are light underneath with some light markings. These bottom-dwellers are the
Danger to Humans Barndoor skates are considered harmless to humans.
