page_title: Short-tail stingray
section_title: Human interactions
hierarchical_section_title: Short-tail stingray / Human interactions
caption_attribution_description: Short-tail stingray (Dasyatis brevicaudata) at the Sydney Aquarium.
context_page_description: The short-tail stingray or smooth stingray is a common species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae. It occurs off southern Africa, typically offshore at a depth of 180–480 m, and off southern Australia and New Zealand, from the intertidal zone to a depth of 156 m. It is mostly bottom-dwelling in nature and can be found across a range of habitats from estuaries to reefs, but also frequently will swim into open water. The largest stingray in the world, this heavy-bodied species can grow upwards of 2.1 m across and 350 kg in weight. Its plain-colored, diamond-shaped pectoral fin disc is characterized by a lack of dermal denticles even in adults, and white pores beside the head on either side. The body can have colors as well as dark grey or black with rows of white spots along each wing. Its tail is usually shorter than the disc and thick at the base. It is armed with large tubercles and a midline row of large thorns in front of the stinging spine which has the dorsal and ventral fin folds behind.
  The diet of the short-tail stingray consists of invertebrates and bony fishes, including burrowing and midwater species.
context_section_description: Curious and unaggressive, the short-tail stingray may approach humans and can be trained to be hand-fed. At Hamelin Bay in Western Australia, many short-tail stingrays, thorntail stingrays, and New Zealand eagle rays regularly gather to be hand-fed fish scraps; the number of visitors has steadily increased in recent years, and interest exists in developing the site as a permanent tourist attraction. However, if startled or harassed, this species is capable of inflicting a serious, even fatal wound with its sting. The sting can measure over 30 cm (12 in) long and can penetrate most types of footwear, including kevlar bootees, and its mucous sheath contains a toxin that causes necrosis. The most dangerous injuries involve damage to a vital organ, massive blood loss, and/or secondary sepsis or tetanus. A startled ray is also able to leap through water, and inflict injuries with its tail. This species is responsible for the majority of stingray injuries off New Zealand; the most infamous incident was the death of Steve Irwin when a stingray pierced his heart with its barbed tail.
  Throughout its range, the short-tail stingray is caught incidentally by various commercial fisheries using trawls, Danish and purse seines, longlines and set lines, and drag and set nets. It is also caught by recreational fishers using hook-and-line (from boats or the shore), spears, and harpoons. Most individuals caught are released alive; often, fishers cut off their tails beforehand for safety, though this practice does not seem to have a significant impact on the rays' long-term survival. Sport fishers occasionally keep captured rays for meat or angling competitions; a few are also kept for display in public aquariums, and they reproduce in captivity. As it survives fishing activities well and remained common throughout its range, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed the short-tail stingray as least concern. Within most of this species' range off New Zealand, targeting it commercially is prohibited. In June 2018 the New Zealand Department of Conservation classified the short-tail stingray as "Not Threatened" with the qualifier "Secure Overseas" under the New Zealand Threat Classification System.
caption: A short-tail stingray at the Sydney Aquarium
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