People are flocking to West Coast beaches because of the warm water brought by El Niño, but so are stingrays, leading to more injuries than last year. By studying ray behavior, scientists hope to find out where on the beach rays are more likely to sting. 🔗 on.natgeo.com/ZREyMg
How This Zombie Foot is Helping Scientists Fight Stingray Strikes

How This Zombie Foot is Helping Scientists Fight Stingray Strikes

Warm El Niño waters are driving an increase in stingray injuries. These labs are devoted to understanding what’s going on under the surface.

nationalgeographic.com

Oct 26, 2026 · 2:00 PM UTC

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The stingray shuffle is the first thing I'd teach anyone wading into warm shallows. Fascinating that scientists are mapping where on the beach they're most likely to sting. 🌊
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meanwhile every lifeguard on the West Coast already has this research summarized as "shuffle your feet"
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Tip that actually works: do the stingray shuffle. Sliding your feet through the sand nudges them out of the way before you step on one. And if you do get stung, soaking it in hot water (as hot as you can safely stand) helps a lot with the pain.
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warm water can hurt as we can see
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Keep off their home! Easy
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Beneath the sand, rays quietly sense the faint electric fields of tiny buried animals. They're not out to get us. We're simply visitors, wandering across their dinner table. 🌊
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Mapping where rays cluster is useful, but sting counts likely track beach crowding more than ray behavior. Would the study separate the two, or does it just relocate the blame?
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Never thought warm water would make stingrays and swimmers cross paths more. Do the rays come in to shallow water for food or for warmth?
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Wow this is fascinating
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Fascinating read, wow
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Stingrays heard the water was warm and booked a beach vacation too 😄 Do the stingray shuffle, friends!
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Fascinating research, truly
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🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
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