This week, several news outlets picked up on the story of an 800-pound roughtail stingray (originally misidentified as a hookskate) caught by a Florida shark fisherman. Captain Mark Quartiano fought the 14-foot “massive beast” for four hours before taking a photo (shown below) and releasing it back into the ocean.
The roughtail stingray is actually not that uncommon. Divers have reported seeing them in multiple locations in the Northeast in the summer months, particularly in Block Island Sound. We’ve heard of at least two smaller roughtail stingrays landed in recent years by anglers fishing for sharks from Cape Cod beaches, and a stingray caught by a Connecticut angler made the news in September. Who knows how many more have been hooked and lost by anglers fishing with typical striper gear?