Southern stingray
Last updated
D Ross Robertson · via Wikipedia: Southern stingray · Public domain
The whiptail stingray species Hypanus americanus inhabits the Western Atlantic Ocean's tropical and subtropical zones, with a documented range extending from New Jersey down to southern Brazil.[1] Its dorsal side displays a mix of mud brown, olive, and grey hues, while the ventral side is white, and the body is shaped like a flat, diamond-shaped disc.[1]
Scientific classification
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumChordata
- ClassChondrichthyes
- SubclassElasmobranchii
- OrderMyliobatiformes
- FamilyDasyatidae
- GenusHypanus
- SpeciesHypanus americanus
Named by (Hildebrand & Schroeder, 1928)
Close relatives
Other species of Hypanus with a Codexery entry.
- Atlantic stingray Hypanus sabinus
- Bluntnose stingray Hypanus say
- Hypanus rubioi Hypanus rubioi
Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Southern stingray (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 1042856 (CC BY 4.0)
Conservation status
Near Threatened (NT)
- LC
- NT▲ this species
- VU
- EN
- CR
- EW
- EX
Source: IUCN Red List assessment · GBIF copy of the Red List category
How big is it?
Largest length in the source, 1.5 m, next to a 1.8 m person.
Diagram: drawn by Codexery, schematic shapes to scale (not a likeness). Length: Wikipedia: Southern stingray
Where the southern stingray has been recorded
Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (31,047 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 43 inland records left out (institution coordinates). 1 isolated far-off record not drawn.
Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain) · place coordinates: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Biology and range
This ray is well-suited to living on the seafloor.[2] Adult coloration on the upper side ranges from olive brown to green, whereas juveniles are dark grey; the underside is consistently white.[2] Movement across the ocean floor is powered by the wing-like pectoral fins, and the slender tail has a long, serrated, venomous spine at its base.[2] This species typically lives alone or in pairs on the bottom, and in some shallow areas thought to be nursery grounds, population densities can reach an estimated 245 individuals per square kilometer.[3]
What the specialist sources record
The World Register of Marine Species records Hypanus americanus (Hildebrand & Schroeder, 1928) as an accepted species in the family Dasyatidae, order Myliobatiformes, class Elasmobranchii.[4] GBIF Backbone Taxonomy also accepts Hypanus americanus and holds 31,396 occurrence records for this taxon as of 7 October 2026.[5] A 2003 study by Chapman in Environmental Biology of Fishes provides detailed observations of one female H. americanus mating with two males, where the female was chased and one male bit her fin before releasing her after copulation.[6] A 2000 study by Henningsen in Copeia documented that in a captive setting, the gestation period ranged from 135 to 226 days, resulting in a litter of two to ten pups.[7]
References
- Wikipedia, "Southern stingray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; Bigelow, H. and Sschroder, W. (1953) Fishes of the Western North Atlantic. Sawfishes, guitarfishes, skates and rays. Mem. Sears Found. Mar. Res. 1, 1-558. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Southern stingray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Southern Stingray. Southern stingray Biological Profile, Ichthyology Department, Florida Museum of Natural History (August, 2007) - via ARKive; Southern Stingray. Southern stingray Biological Profile, Ichthyology Department, Florida Museum of Natural History (August, 2007) - via ARKive; Lieske, E. and Myers, R. (2002) Coral Reef Fishes: Indo-Pacific and Caribbean. HarperCollins Publishers, London – via ARKive; Carpenter, K.E. (2001) The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Atlantic, Volume 1. Food and Agriculture Organi en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Southern stingray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Tilley, "Population density estimation of southern stingrays Dasyatis americanaon a Caribbean atoll using distance sampling", Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 2013, p. 202 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- World Register of Marine Species, Hypanus americanus (AphiaID 1042856). CC BY 4.0. marinespecies.org
- GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Hypanus americanus (taxon key 9335213). CC BY 4.0 (backbone); counts are facts. gbif.org
- Wikipedia, "Southern stingray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Chapman, "Mating behavior of southern stingrays, Dasyatis americana (Dasyatidae)", Environmental Biology of Fishes, 2003, p. 241 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Southern stingray" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Henningsen, A.D., "Notes on reproduction in the southern stingray, Dasyatis americana (Chondrichthyes: Dasyatidae), in a captive environment", Copeia, 2000, p. 826–828 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Southern stingray (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Rays
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Southern stingray (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Classification: the source article's taxobox; order, family and genus checked against WoRMS, the World Register of Marine Species (CC BY 4.0).
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List assessment.
- Occurrence records: GBIF (CC0 / CC BY). Basemap: Natural Earth (public domain).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced