Whiptail stingray

A ray in the family Dasyatidae, characterized by a flattened body and a long, slender, whip-like tail. Many species have a venomous spine near the tail base.

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Dasyatidae: A family of cartilaginous fishes commonly known as whiptail stingrays. Whiptail stingrays belong to this family, whose members share a flattened body plan.
Stingray locomotion: Movement by rays using waves or flaps of their enlarged pectoral fins. Whiptail stingrays use fin motion to glide over the bottom and through open water.
Stingray injury: A wound caused by contact with a stingray's tail spine, sometimes involving venom. Stepping on a concealed whiptail stingray can drive its defensive spine into a person's foot or leg.
Eagle ray: A ray with wing-like pectoral fins and a projecting head, often adapted for swimming in open water. Eagle rays differ from typical whiptail stingrays in body shape and swimming style.
Batoidea: The group of cartilaginous fishes that includes rays and skates. This broader group places whiptail stingrays among flattened relatives of sharks.
Electroreception: The detection of electrical fields by specialized sensory organs. It allows a ray to locate prey that cannot be seen beneath sand.
Stingray shuffle: A walking technique that moves the feet along the bottom to alert buried stingrays. The technique can reduce accidental encounters with rays in shallow water.
Round stingray: A small stingray with a rounded disc, found mainly in shallow coastal waters. Its compact body contrasts with the elongated forms common among whiptail stingrays.
Cartilaginous fish: A fish whose skeleton is made primarily of cartilage rather than bone. Whiptail stingrays share the flexible skeletal structure characteristic of this group.
Benthic feeding: Feeding on organisms that live on or within the bottom of a body of water. Many whiptail stingrays find worms, mollusks, and crustaceans in seafloor sediment.