Best Beware Thy Stingray

[125blackfire]

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.



http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/92308/?fp=1

[tattoo]

Nice read . thanks BF. 

[bear74]

Thanks for sharing. I do have a question though. I hear people talk about catching them all the time but nothing about if they keep them for food or let them go. Do people eat stingrays? Just wondering. I know if I  catch one I am going to think real hard about just cutting the line. Not sure I want to mess with one myself.

[tattoo]

I have heard of people eating the wings. 

[jack1747]

Thanks for sharing. I do have a question though. I hear people talk about catching them all the time but nothing about if they keep them for food or let them go. Do people eat stingrays? Just wondering. I know if I  catch one I am going to think real hard about just cutting the line. Not sure I want to mess with one myself.

Lots of folks get rays and skates mixed up. You can eat Skates.  Rays are a plague on the Bay.  Most folks here have taken to killing them when they catch one.

Top pic is a Skate (don't have stingers)
Bottom pic is a cow nose ray (do have stingers)

[bayou boy]

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.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 huh what??

[dfran]

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.                                                                                                       

If they don't know how many there are, how do they know there is 20% less

[jefftoleft]

There are plenty cownose rays check this out  http://amazingfunpicture.blogspot.com/2009/01/stingray-migration-gulf-of-mexico.html

[dfran]

There are 178 species of Stingrays

[Chef Lar]

There are plenty cownose rays check this out  http://amazingfunpicture.blogspot.com/2009/01/stingray-migration-gulf-of-mexico.html

Nice pics, but it said they migrate clockwise from western Florida. I only know about clocks for Eskimos that go reverse clockwise every other Saturday.

[captaincrab55]

Nice pics, but it said they migrate clockwise from western Florida. I only know about clocks for Eskimos that go reverse clockwise every other Saturday.

Since you mentioned clocks,  don't forget about Daylight Savings Time (about a week away)...    Do Eskimos,    set their clocks back or forward if their clock already goes in reverse??.....??     

 

[captaincrab55]

I have heard of people eating the wings. 

Those KFC wings are good....

[mdjohn]

 

[jefftoleft]

Those KFC wings are good....

  Yeah they taste like chicken

[crabtracker]

taste and look like scallops, punch them out round with a cookie cutter - rumor was restaurants would substitute these for real scallops 

not a rumor!

[HJH]

I have heard of people eating the wings. 

When I lived in South Carolina that was common. Heard thay taste like scallops

[Crab Shack]

Ir-reputable fish mongers and restaurants will sell "scallops" that are punched out of skates........I get scallops from Costco and they are all different sizes and shapes........one clue that they are REAL scallops....  Of course that's sea scallops....bay scallops are smaller,  different tasting in IMO.  But that's true of anyone who is ir-reputable...always trying to pull a fast one.  Before I joined this board and learned a few things from other members, I bought some crabs from a place  on Kent Island......I asked if they were all heavy with meat and no "whiteys".  Turned out they were mostly "whiteys"    Now I know better and when I need to buy crabs,  I get them from members of this board or from places recommend by members of this board.  To quote from The Who......."Won't get fooled again" 

[captaincrab55]

Ir-reputable fish mongers and restaurants will sell "scallops" that are punched out of skates........I get scallops from Costco and they are all different sizes and shapes........one clue that they are REAL scallops....  Of course that's sea scallops....bay scallops are smaller,  different tasting in IMO.  But that's true of anyone who is ir-reputable...always trying to pull a fast one.  Before I joined this board and learned a few things from other members, I bought some crabs from a place  on Kent Island......I asked if they were all heavy with meat and no "whiteys".  Turned out they were mostly "whiteys"    Now I know better and when I need to buy crabs,  I get them from members of this board or from places recommend by members of this board.  To quote from The Who......."Won't get fooled again" 

[Potty Mouth]

Anyone that wants to know more about eatin' ray wings and such should look back at posts by member known as SYoung.  He did a lot of bow fishing for rays and had a lot of experience cookin' em up.  Good info if ya care to look into it.  Seemed like a tough go to get the meat out from between the cartlidges in the wing and then deal with the animal quick enough after killing to keep it from tasting bad.  They are similar to sharks in that their body builds up ammonia in it starting right after it's dead and that will effect the quality of the fish etc... whatever... just to let anyone interested know that the info is here...

[jack1747]

Anyone that wants to know more about eatin' ray wings and such should look back at posts by member known as SYoung.  He did a lot of bow fishing for rays and had a lot of experience cookin' em up.  Good info if ya care to look into it.  Seemed like a tough go to get the meat out from between the cartlidges in the wing and then deal with the animal quick enough after killing to keep it from tasting bad.  They are similar to sharks in that their body builds up ammonia in it starting right after it's dead and that will effect the quality of the fish etc... whatever... just to let anyone interested know that the info is here...

i remember that.... now... thanks 

[Syoung]

Thanks for sharing. I do have a question though. I hear people talk about catching them all the time but nothing about if they keep them for food or let them go. Do people eat stingrays? Just wondering. I know if I  catch one I am going to think real hard about just cutting the line. Not sure I want to mess with one myself.

We eat every southern stingray we kill. I don't really like cownose as much so I give most of that away. Cownose need to be soaked in milk or saltwater overnight to remove a strong liver like taste from the meat.

It has been illegal to mark dogfish and rays as scallops for a long time. Not to say it is not still done.

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.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 huh what??

The cownose population has increased by 30-40% in the last few years as a result from the Asian shark finning boats. There is an estimated 50,000,000+ cownose entering the Chesapeake Bay every summer. A ray will consume 50-100% of it's 40lb(average) body weight every day.

The southern population seems to be steady but an increase in popularity as a bowfishing species could really hurt the amazing Chincoteague population. I myself have cut back hunting southerns and target cownose after we shoot 2 southerns per person.

As for eating them I like to remove all the tendons between the strands of meat and dice it up and stir fry it or to add to Gumbo or Jumbalaya or grind it up to use as burger in Dirty Rice.

[dfran]

We eat every southern stingray we kill. I don't really like cownose as much so I give most of that away. Cownose need to be soaked in milk or saltwater overnight to remove a strong liver like taste from the meat.

It has been illegal to mark dogfish and rays as scallops for a long time. Not to say it is not still done.

The cownose population has increased by 30-40% in the last few years as a result from the Asian shark finning boats. There is an estimated 50,000,000+ cownose entering the Chesapeake Bay every summer. A ray will consume 50-100% of it's 40lb(average) body weight every day.

The southern population seems to be steady but an increase in popularity as a bowfishing species could really hurt the amazing Chincoteague population. I myself have cut back hunting southerns and target cownose after we shoot 2 southerns per person.

As for eating them I like to remove all the tendons between the strands of meat and dice it up and stir fry it or to add to Gumbo or Jumbalaya or grind it up to use as burger in Dirty Rice.

What do the Cownose rays eat? Just a little quick math here. If 50 million rays in the bay eat 20#'s a day(1/2 there average weight) that is 1 billion #'s per day of thier food. What % of thier food is crabs? Even if they only eat 2#'s of crabs a day that = 100 million #'s of crabs a day. I think DNR should be regulating the rays not the crabbers.

[jack1747]

09-03 NOTICE OF INTENT TO PAY $0.30 PER POUND FOR THE PROCESSING OF COW NOSED RAYS HARVESTED IN THE WATERS OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA FOR THE 2009 OYSTER REPLENISHMENT PROGRAM:  DEADLINE 3/25/09

http://www.mrc.state.va.us/procurement/09-03_cow-nosed-ray-notice_02-26-09.pdf

[Potty Mouth]

09-03 NOTICE OF INTENT TO PAY $0.30 PER POUND FOR THE PROCESSING OF COW NOSED RAYS HARVESTED IN THE WATERS OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA FOR THE 2009 OYSTER REPLENISHMENT PROGRAM:  DEADLINE 3/25/09

http://www.mrc.state.va.us/procurement/09-03_cow-nosed-ray-notice_02-26-09.pdf

Good deal... at least a step towards more crab and less cow-nose... large or small step we will see... now if some waterman bite and go get em, we may even notice an impact.  How are the cow-nose to be fished, gill net?  Seems like a heavy haul and a lot of by-catch if they are to be caught by net.

[Syoung]

What do the Cownose rays eat? Just a little quick math here. If 50 million rays in the bay eat 20#'s a day(1/2 there average weight) that is 1 billion #'s per day of thier food. What % of thier food is crabs? Even if they only eat 2#'s of crabs a day that = 100 million #'s of crabs a day. I think DNR should be regulating the rays not the crabbers.

They are scared to death of the increase in cownose. I have cut rays open with 1 dozen softshells in them. They have been trying to develop a market for them. When it takes 5 minutes to get 5lbs of mediocre meat it does not make it a profitable commercial resource. Sharks and rays are much alike and build ammonia as soon as it is on board. Cownose or southerns require almost instant meat processing which is not cost efficient.