SARASOTA, Fla. (AP) _ Mote Marine Laboratory researchers are tagging and tracking giant eagle rays in the Gulf of Mexico.
The giant rays _ which can weigh up to 200 pounds _ make the west coast of Florida home between March and November.
Where they go in the winter remains a mystery.
In Florida, it is illegal to kill spotted eagle rays, but elsewhere in the world, fishermen catch them to sell for food.
The Sarasota Herald-Tribune (http://bit.ly/L2My6C) reports that scientists want to fill the research gaps by finding the rays’ growth rate, their population size and whether they breed off the Florida Keys, Cuba or Mexico.