A Rare Spotted Eagle Ray Flew Into This Alabama Family’s Boat And Prematurely Gave Birth To Four Pups

On July 16, April Jones and her family took part in the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo– an annual fishing tournament with a total awards package valued up to one million dollars.

But, after April, her husband and son began fishing near Dauphin Island, Alabama, the group experienced one of the rarest occurrences ever.

A massive female Spotted Eagle Ray flew out of the sea, hit April’s shoulder, and landed on the family’s boat.

The ray weighed over four hundred pounds and had a wingspan of five feet.

“This thing was beautiful. We think the reason she jumped was due to remora being stuck to her belly,” April wrote in a Facebook update.

Remoras will often suction to rays since the species have a symbiotic relationship: remoras help remove parasites from rays, while the rays allow remoras to travel to food and shelter sites quicker.

In this instance, though, perhaps the Spotted Eagle Ray was trying to shake some loose before inadvertently landing in the Jones’ boat.

The show-stopping appearance definitely terrified the female ray, though. The Jones family attempted to lift her back into the water, but the ray was too heavy to handle– especially while thrashing about.

Facebook; pictured above is a photo of the ray that April shared

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The family also continuously poured water over the ray, but the stress was just too much for her.

The ray ended up prematurely birthing four Spotted Eagle Ray pups due to all of the chaos. And unfortunately, the babies did not make it.

“We are devastated the babies did not survive, but there was nothing we could have done. The babies were donated to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab so others can learn about this amazing animal,” April said.

As for the mama ray, a team of four men was eventually able to hoist her back to safety in the water. She is now doing just fine.

And since April shared the bizarre incident on Facebook, her story has gone viral. It has earned thousands of shares, one thousand likes, and hundreds of comments.

“You did your best. Nature does what it does, and we can only hope that by saving the mama, she can go on to make a lot of babies in the future. Thank you!” commented one user.

“Poor babies! I am so glad you were able to help the mama, though,” wrote another user.

After being hit by the ray, April is also recovering well from a shoulder strain and sore collar bone.

To view her original Facebook post, visit the link here.

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Katharina Buczek graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Digital Arts. Specializing ... More about Katharina Buczek

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