Watch the video of the encounter below.
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The common notion of stingrays is that of a ferocious killer, waiting to stab anyone coming in their range without any sort of provocation.
It isn’t wrong that these creatures have the power and ability to inflict serious wounds which can be fatal in extreme cases but they don’t attack humans unless they have a good reason for it.
The negative notion of this species is partly backed by the tragedy that struck Steve Irvin. The animal enthusiast got a heart-piercing wound by the barbed tail of a stingray while he was recording a documentary.
What happened with Steve was an unusual event, not something which can be associated with the nature of this fish.
As a matter of fact, stingrays are very intelligent and they never attack without provocation.
If we were to look into the accidents involving stingrays, most of the cases involve unintended provocation by humans, with the attacks from the stingrays being always defensive.
For instance, if a stingray is stepped on, it takes it as an attack from a predator and as a reflexive action, it swings its tail, unveiling fatally dangerous spikes loaded with a potent poison.
If a stingray is not approached in the wrong manner, it simply prefers to outswim all the creatures in the sea and humans.
Stingrays have large fins, enabling them to propel swiftly in the ocean, so they can easily flee the situation rather than fighting back – it’s just more convenient and less risky for them.
Some tourist locations even encourage people to feed them, allowing tourists to interact with the docile creatures in a safe manner.
A marine sanctuary known as Hol Chan in Belize, near San Pedro island, is one such location.
The amicable and caring treatment given to the stingrays of this sanctuary has made them accept humans as creatures not to be feared.
As a result, there’s almost no possibility of them attacking people.
It seems like the stingrays enjoy interacting with people as they move toward anyone showing interest in a rather quick fashion.
In a rare moment caught on camera, a swimmer can be seen rubbing the nose of a stingray as it changes its direction to come right in front of him. While he’s petting one of the rays, another can be seen swimming right over his head.
A third can be seen approaching as the swimmer dives to the sand at the bottom.
Instances like these show that stingrays are not monstrous enemies of man but are actually pretty friendly as long as humans don’t act like a threat to them.