What could be more beguiling than a baby bat ray breezing through the water? Bottom-dwelling beauties such as this juvenile ray are typically born in sloughs and estuaries, where there are few predators, lots of food and brackish water. Wetlands are key to the survival of countless shark species — the bat ray is a flat shark — as they provide the perfect nursery for their young.

After munching on molluscs and crunchy crustaceans in these calm waterways, the ray will eventually make its way into the ocean. It will potentially grow to be nearly six feet across from wingtip to wingtip! Those big, bat-like wings help the ray uncover prey hidden on the seafloor.