According to the fishes expert, “You have a better chance of winning the Powerball lottery than dying from a stingray barb.” While what happened to Steve Irwin is a tragedy, Henningsen notes it’s extremely rare to have a vital organ punctured by a stingray barb. The Cayman Islands Tourism Association water sports directors had not heard of cancellations from members, either.Īccording to statistics, there have been only 17 stingray deaths recorded worldwide. I also spoke with several Grand Cayman tour companies that operate tours to Stingray City, one of the most popular stingray gathering grounds in the Caribbean none has experienced cancellations because of Steve Irwin’s death. “I think everyone understands that this was a rare circumstance,” she said. Royal Caribbean representative Lyan Sierra-Caro stated that the cruise line had not seen an increase in questions from passengers, either. Royal Caribbean International stated it had not changed any stingray excursions that the cruise line offers. Most notably, the human-fed rays come to behave more like captive rays. Henningsen says recent research has shown major differences in behavior between wild stingrays that are fed by humans and wild stingrays that feed on their own.

These local populations are now major tourist attractions in some areas like Grand Cayman. The stingrays that most cruise passengers encounter have been artificially concentrated in some areas by resort owners and divers who have established regular feedings that attract them. “Stingrays only flick their barbs upwards in an involuntary reflex action if they feel threatened, as a defensive measure when it is caught, stepped on or otherwise disturbed,” Henningsen says. People just need to remember that stingrays have long, whiplike tails with one or more razor-sharp, serrated barbs, which they use for defense. Henningsen says that with proper precautions, everyone can safely appreciate the graceful beauty of stingrays up close. Stingrays have few natural predators other than the occasional large shark and are not targeted by commercial fisheries. Henningsen says female southern stingrays have a maximum disc width of 6½ feet (which is larger than their male counterparts) the largest recorded weight of this species is 300 pounds. According to Alan Henningsen, a noted marine biologist who serves as the fishes research specialist for the National Aquarium in Baltimore, the most common stingray encountered in Caribbean waters is the “Southern Stingray.” These docile creatures can be found in shallow beach waters, on sandy bottoms, over sea grass beds, in lagoons and near reefs, where they feed mainly on crabs, clams, shrimp, marine worms and small fish.

The stingrays behind the beyond