Cownose Stingray

Cownose Ray

Rhinoptera bonasus

Size: to 3 ft across

Habitat: Coastal

Notes:
Unlike the other fishes on this page, this is a free-swimming ray, often found near shore in large schools. They generally arrive en masse late in the season and are otherwise uncommon.

These rays fly through the upper waters on flapping pectoral fins, sometimes even leaping out of the water, although they feed on mollusks near the bottom. They are a favorite food of sharks.

Cownose Ray

Bullnose Rays are similar, but with protruding rounded snouts. Southern Spotted Eagle Rays are closely related. All retain the stinger of their bottom-dwelling cousins.


Redbird Subway Car - in service

There is a great deal of controversy over the use of subway cars as artificial reefs. There shouldn't be. Subway cars are fish condos. They are the perfect size and shape to provide homes for all sorts of fishes, as well as large attachment areas for other organisms. The fact that they come complete with large door and window openings is even better. Most reef materials, such as ships and barges, improve with age because they open up, allowing easier access to the interior. Indeed, some of the most barren reefs I have seen are those that are completely intact, since they offer little shelter.

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