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by: M. C. D

Kingdom: Animal:

Phylum: Chordata

bilateral symmetry
segmented body, including segmented muscles
three germ layers and a well-developed coelom.
single, dorsal, hollow nerve cord, usually with an enlarged anterior end (brain)
tail projecting beyond (posterior to) the anus at some stage of development
pharyngeal pouches present at some stage of development
ventral heart, with dorsal and ventral blood vessels and a closed blood system
complete digestive system
bony or cartilaginous endoskeleton usually present.
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Class: Chondricthyes

on the undersides, behind the mouth, rather than on the sides as they are in sharks, to whom they are closely related.
Rays have slender tails and very well developed pectoral fins.
Most rays live on the bottom
Rays breath in through "spiracles" on the side of the head behind the eyes, with the water exhaled through the gill slits underneath.
Consists of approximately 340 species of rays which can be classified into seven major
Stingrays frequently lay buried in the sand and use their barbed tail to protect themselves from danger

The Sting Ray

The sting ray has a way

a stinging ray has its day

when it fells that your in

the way... Sting!

"Southern Atlantic Stingray." University of Michigan. 11 Feb 2004. <http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/index.html>.

"Southern Atlantic Stingray." 11 Feb 2004. <http://yahooligans.yahoo.com/>.