Whoa: Connecticut Fishermen Catch a Massive 400-Pound Stingray

I don't know about you, but in my world, stingrays aren't 400 pounds. In the real world so to speak, it's just as uncommon for your basic ray, too, so this catch in the Long Island Sound off the Connecticut coast is about as rare as you can get. Truly a 'whoa' moment.

Here's a quick reference for you: according to dimensions.com, the average stingray weighs in between 30 to 70 pounds, with the larger ones being in warmer, southern waters.  According to seaparadise.com, the Atlantic stingray typically measures 10 inches wide and weighs a mere five pounds. However, the short-tail stingray can reach up to 6.9 feet wide and weigh over 770 pounds.

In this case, a Connecticut Fish and Wildlife survey crew surprisingly caught an absolutely monstrous and rare Roughtail Stingray that was six feet long and five feet wide, weighing a massive 400 pounds.

According to the Connecticut Fish and Wildlife Facebook page, these gentle giants of the sea aren't uncommon in New England down the coastline to Florida but are quite rare in the Long Island Sound between Connecticut and Long Island, New York.

Yes, they have venomous spines in their tail, according to the survey crew. However, they aren't that aggressive but are deep water swimmers that can grow to be eight-and-a-half feet and 800 pounds, according to Wikipedia.

And yes, you can breathe a sigh of relief like I did, as these fishermen immediately returned the ray to the water after taking measurements. The ray happily swam away after posing for a few photos.