Thousands of Cownose Rays Spotted off Long Island in Rare "Fever" Formation

Drone footage from August 7, 2026, off Southampton, NY, captured thousands of cownose rays in a mass grouping called a "fever." Florida State biologist Dean Grubbs attributes the sighting to warming ocean temperatures pushing the species northward. He cites blacktip sharks' decades-long range shift from North Carolina to New England as a parallel example.