Find Scarlet’s Adventure Episode 11: Rays of Sunshine and other episodes here. Expand learning on stingrays with the resources below.
Eyes on Science
- Stingrays at LLPA
- Freshwater Stingray Enrichment at LLPA
- What’s the Most Venomous Animal at the Aquarium?
Fin-tastic Activities
- Stingray Coloring Page
- Stingray Maze
- Stingray Electroreception Activity
- Eating like a Stingray Activity
- Scarlet’s Adventure Mad-Lib
- Stingray Crossword
- Stingray Wordsearch
Discover Stingrays
Stingrays are in the same family as sharks: they have a skeleton made of cartilage, plated gills, and teeth that can be easily replaced. The best way to tell the difference between a shark and a ray is by looking for where their gills are located: sharks have gills on their sides while rays have gills on the underside of their bodies. Most rays also have their mouths on the underside of their bodies, so they never see their food. Instead, they use their keen sense of smell and special electro-sensors called Ampullae of Lorenzini that detect minute electrical signals coming from their prey’s muscles. A ray can even detect an animal hidden under sand by searching for the electrical signals given by their prey’s heartbeat! Most rays have plate-like teeth used to crush the shells of clams, crustaceans, sea urchins, and snails. Stingrays get their name from the venomous barbed stinger on their tail. Stingrays use their stinger to ward off predators for a chance to swim away or hide underneath the sand.
More Ways to Explore
Find 14 fun facts about stingrays at National Geographic Kids
*External links are provided for informational purposes only; they do not constitute an endorsement by LLPA nor is LLPA responsible for the accuracy, legality, or content of the external site.
