Florida

‘Never seen anything like it.’ Hundreds of stingrays crowd a canal near Florida homes

School of stingrays spotted in canal near Marco Island home Monday morning.
School of stingrays spotted in canal near Marco Island home Monday morning. Laura Kotte

A school of about 100 stingrays flooded a canal near a home in Marco Island, a barrier island off the coast of Southwest Florida.

Lauren Kotte, a 41 year-old retired resident, said the incident happened Sunday afternoon and continued into Monday morning near her home on Buttonwood Court.

After, speaking with people who have lived in Marco Island for more than 20 years, she said they were shocked by the sighting.

“We just bought our home in March, so I have never seen anything like it,” Kotte said.

The stingrays, known as a cownose ray, tend to swim at the surface and are more commonly found in freshwater, rather than saltwater, according to NBC2. They get their name from the shape of their head, which resembles a cow nose.

This story was originally published September 23, 2021 at 12:17 PM.

Kalia Richardson
Miami Herald
Kalia Richardson is a 2021 fall intern for the Miami Herald’s Breaking News team. She has previously written for The Independent Florida Alligator, the North-Central NPR Affiliate WUFT News as well as interned for the Orlando Sentinel on the justice and safety desk. Kalia is a 305 native and attends the University of Florida.
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