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Stingray Bay

Sit back and enjoy the view as these gentle giants glide through the water and are even hand-fed by divers.

What Will You Discover?

Get up close views of remarkable cownose, spotted eagle, and southern rays as they seemingly fly through this  lagoon. Ask questions about these unusual creatures, watch a live feeding, or venture to the shallows for a chance to feel the rays yourself!

Bonnethead Shark Bonnethead Shark

Bonnethead Shark

The smallest of the hammerhead shark family and reaching a maximum length of about four feet, the bonnethead shark migrates in large schools to warmer latitudes in the winter and to cooler waters in the summer. Rarely alone, there are usually 5-15 sharks in a school of either males or females. They are commonly found in estuaries, shallow bays, and channels, mud and sand flats, and reef habitats.

Conservation Status

Endangered

Diet

Crustaceans, fish, mollusks, cephalopods

Range

Western Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea, Eastern Pacific Ocean

Did You Know?

After mating, females can store sperm for up to four months prior to actually fertilizing the eggs. This control over fertilization is believed to be an adaptation ensuring that the pups are born during optimal conditions for their survival. Once fertilized, the gestation period is only five to six months long, the shortest of all sharks.

Epaulette Shark Epaulette Shark

Epaulette Shark

Epaulette sharks often forage for food in tidal pools and risk being dry-docked when the water evaporates, but they can survive for over an hour without any oxygen and even “walk” on their fins to escape when stranded above the water.

Conservation Status

Least Concern

Diet

Crustaceans, fish, worms

Range

Southwest Pacific Ocean - coastal Northern Australia and New Guinea

Did You Know?

Though they are capable swimmers, epaulette sharks generally slink around through the reef on their thickly muscled, paddle-shaped pectoral and pelvic fins, bending their body from side to side in a movement that is very similar to the gait of salamanders, an example of convergent evolution.

Whitespotted Bamboo Shark Whitespotted Bamboo Shark

Whitespotted Bamboo Shark

Whitespotted bamboo sharks can lay motionless on the bottom by using a hole behind their eye, called a spiracle, to pass water over their gills. They usually rest like this during the day in crevices on the reef or under corals, preferring to hunt at night.

Conservation Status

Near Threatened

Range

Indo-Pacific region

Diet

Fish and crustaceans

Did You Know?

Likely as an adaptation for a lack of males in the area, female whitespotted bamboo sharks can reproduce by parthenogenesis, which means offspring are created without a contribution from a male, with the resulting pup being a clone of the mother.

Blacktip Reef Shark Blacktip Reef Shark

Blacktip Reef Shark

The blacktip reef shark prefers shallow water coral reefs occupying a small home range where they spend most of their time. They are typically seen swimming back and forth along reef ledges, making occasional short forays onto sandy flats.

Conservation Status

Vulnerable

Range

Indo-Pacific region

Diet

Fish, cephalopods, crustaceans

Did You Know?

As an apex predator of the coral reef environment, the blacktip reef shark plays a vital ecological role by maintaining a healthy balance on the reef.

Cownose Ray Cownose Ray

Cownose Ray

The cownose ray is a pelagic and gregarious species that forms large schools with thousands of members. It is thought that the cownose ray’s high predation of oyster beds in areas like the Chesapeake Bay could further complicate the problem of declining oyster populations.

Conservation Status

Vulnerable

Diet

Mollusks, crustaceans, fish

Range

Eastern and western Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico

Did You Know?

Cownose rays have a venomous barb at the base of their tails. Captain John Smith learned this the hard way when in 1608 he was stung so severely his crew thought he was going to die. The site on the Rappahannock River where he was stung is still known today as “Stingray Point.”

Spotted Eagle Ray Spotted Eagle Ray

Spotted Eagle Ray

The spotted eagle ray is easy to identify with its spotted dorsal surface and whip-like tail. Usually found in bays and near coral reefs, this ray will use its shovel-shaped snout and duck-like bill to search in the sand for invertebrates. When a prey item is found, the ray crushes it with plate-like teeth.

Conservation Status

Endangered

Range

Atlantic Ocean

Diet

Mollusks, worms, crustaceans, fish, snails

Did You Know?

Once thought to be a single species found worldwide in tropical and temperate waters, recent research suggests that the spotted eagle ray is actually three to four distinct species based on geographic location, morphology, genetic analysis, and other factors.

Whitetip Reef Shark Whitetip Reef Shark

Whitetip Reef Shark

The whitetip reef shark may be found resting in caves or under ledges during the day, sometimes even stacked up in piles with other whitetips! At night, this shark is a very active predator, rooting out small fish and other prey items hiding in the reef.

Conservation Status

Vulnerable

Habitat

Coral or rocky reefs

Diet

Fish, cephalopods, crustaceans, mollusks

Range

Eastern Pacific Ocean and Indo-Pacific region

Did You Know?

Contrary to popular belief, not all sharks need to stay moving to survive. Whitetip reef sharks take gulps of water in their mouth and force it out though the gills. This process, called “buccal pumping” is used by some shark species to allow them to continue to respirate while at rest.

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