All fish / Dasyatidae

Southern Stingray

Hypanus americanus

Also known as southern stingray, southern ray, dasyatis americana, atlantic stingray, サザンスティングレイ, 美洲魟, 南方魟

A large, diamond-shaped ray with a grey to brown upper surface, pale underside and a long whip-like tail carrying a venomous spine. It is kept mainly in public aquaria and touch pools, where it becomes tame and feeds from the hand.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Semi

Adult size

100 cm

Temperature

22 to 28 °C

pH

8 to 8.4

Smallest tank

10000 litres

Keep as

Singly or in small groups in very large systems

Diet

Carnivore: clams, shrimp, squid, fish and other meaty seafood

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

15 to 20 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Western Atlantic: New Jersey to southern Brazil, including Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean

Breeding

Live-bearing, with females giving birth to a small litter of pups after a gestation of several months. It has bred in public aquaria but is not realistic in home systems.

Good to know

Females can exceed 1.5 m across, far too big for almost any home aquarium, and the tail spine can inflict a very painful wound. It needs a huge tank with a deep sand bed and gentle tankmates.