Beware The Stingray!

by rumana husain | February 26, 2009 at 02:01 am

847 views | 66 Recommendations | 22 comments

Stingrays will always remind us of Steve Irwin, the 'Crocodile Hunter,' won't they? Here is a story of a record-breaking stingray.

A record-breaking stingray capture, by the numbers:

1 rod and line

90 minutes for one British biologist (with help) to reel in the freshwater fish

13 men to drag said fish onto a boat

125 pounds—that's the difference between the stingray's weight at 771 pounds and the previous record rod-&-reel capture of a catfish

The Thailand capture of the massive female stingray was part of a program to tag such Maeklong River residents. The captive, part of a "vulnerable species" listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, measured a hefty 7 feet by 7 feet. That doesn't include the 10-foot-long poisonous tail.

Such creatures are dangerous, of course: Famed Australian TV personality Steve "Crocodile Hunter" Irwin died from a stingray barb at the Great Barrier Reef in 2006.

The numbers currently put one Ian Welch on the world record books. (Pictures of Welch posing with his female companion can be found here.) The stingray's resistance nearly dunked Welch into the river, and he was literally saved by the seat of his pants when a crewmate grabbed his trousers.

Another reason that this marine fish is so huge: She's pregnant. (Cue soap-opera gasp.) After she had been towed to the bank (too big to be onboard the boat), she was duly marked, had DNA samples removed, and returned to the river whence she unwillingly came. Welch gave her a farewell smooch, then spent the rest of the day with a cold beer and memories of her.

By the way, one number isn't known: the exact stingray population count, which has shrunk 20 percent in the past decade. With this lady's help, at least one more will be added to this number...and with a tale to tell.

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Sanjay Jha

at 02:52 on February 26th, 2009

Good Post.

rumana husain

at 03:01 on February 26th, 2009

thanks sanjay.

Uwe Paschen

at 05:56 on February 26th, 2009

They may e dangerous, however usually rather calm and peaceful. Impressive Animal.

rumana husain

at 09:10 on February 26th, 2009

paschen, thanks for your comment. yes, they are certainly impressive. what with the flaps and the long tail...so not like a typical fish!

hogtyde88

at 10:09 on February 26th, 2009

We swam with Stingrays at Grand Caymans. They were beautiful and gentle creatures. Can they be dangerous? Sure, but we did not see any aggressive behavior from them.

hogtyde88 has contributed a photo to this story.

Rhonda J Mangus

at 10:28 on February 26th, 2009

Great story, rumana! Thanks!

rumana husain

at 10:28 on February 26th, 2009

wow! it must be a fascinating experience hogtyde88. lucky you! thanks for the comment as well as for adding an image to the story.

Fripouille

at 10:29 on February 26th, 2009

A very enjoyable read.

Man, that is some fish! I have read that they are generally peaceful creatures, but like many species who appear placid, it's best not to frighten or approach them...

"13 men to drag said fish onto a boat" :) Love that line!!

rumana husain

at 10:30 on February 26th, 2009

thanks rhonda.

rumana husain

at 10:33 on February 26th, 2009

yes fripouille, true they do "appear placid". 13 men for the 7 ft x 7 ft creature and the tail an additional 10 ft. those men must be huffing and puffing!

BobbiTG4M

at 10:49 on February 26th, 2009

Why didn't they just leave the poor creature alone? Just because it caught on their line they need to bring it in? Sad.

aelusive

at 10:57 on February 26th, 2009

Excellent story and pics

kidreger

at 14:02 on February 26th, 2009

Photo taken at the reef off of Caye Caulker, Belize. Stingrays gather in large numbers there. This picture was taken from the boat, however in the water it was very common to have up to 50 or so stingrays all around you. They are quite friendly.

kidreger has contributed a photo to this story.

Stephen McGrath

at 14:57 on February 26th, 2009

Rumana, you might want to clean up some of the photos used in your story. Some are manta rays, not stingrays.

Garry99

at 15:07 on February 26th, 2009

This picture was taken on the beach of a small Island near Tahiti. The water was only about 1-2 feet deep. The ray was very docile, and we were able to touch it.

I have several more pictures if anyone is interested.

Garry99 has contributed a photo to this story.

rumana husain

at 21:07 on February 26th, 2009

thank you all for your comments, appreciations and photo contributions. love the pictures. stephen, thanks for pointing out, but frankly i want to leave them as (i) they are labelled as such and (ii) if they are not, i wouldnt know which ones to discard! :-)