10 Uses for A Stingray + How To Catch One

The Stingray is a unique fish that can be caught only on Ginger Island—wondering where to find it, or what to do with it now that it’s yours? Read on to find out!

Fish Properties

All of the many fish in Stardew Valley have two special properties that define them – difficulty, and behavior.

Fish Difficulty

Fish difficulty is measured by numbers. Each fish has a specific number assigned to them that denotes how difficult they are to catch. For example, the easiest fish to catch in the game is the Carp. These freshwater fish have a difficulty rating of just 15. On the other hand, the hardest fish in the game to catch – The Legend – has a difficulty rating of 110.

Fish Behavior

Fish behavior, on the other hand, describes what sort of movement the fish generally employ in the fishing mini-game. There are six different behaviors a fish can have in Stardew Valley:

• Smooth – Fish with the Smooth behavior are the easiest to catch. Their movement patterns are steady and smooth.
• Mixed – Fish with the Mixed behavior follow a basic fish pattern. They aren’t very hard to catch, but will occasionally go up and down randomly, which may prove tricky.
• Sinker – These fish follow a similar basic pattern, but then they drop suddenly. In the mini-game, their movement is faster when they’re going down.
• Floater – These fish are like Sinkers, but the opposite. Their movement is faster when they’re going up.
• Dart – Fish with the Dart behavior are the hardest to catch at all. They can move quickly in both directions and may change their direction very suddenly and rapidly.

What Is A Stingray Like?

Stingrays are brown, flat fish that have little golden specks on their bodies. Using the above terms, we can now describe Stingrays. A Stringray’s difficulty is set at 80 – so, it’s relatively high on the scale of Carp or Legend. In terms of behavior, Stingways are Sinkers.

How To Find A Stingray

Time and Weather

Luckily, Stingrays are not too fussy about the time and weather. You can find a Stingray while fishing at any time of day, during any season, and under any weather condition.

Place

Ginger Island

The Stingray can only be found on Ginger Island, and only in the Pirate Cove in particular. To get to Ginger Island, we recommend you read this helpful article. But, the short story is, you’ll need to…

1. Finish the Community Center or JojaMart Warehouse
2. Wait a few days until you receive an invitation from Willy, to visit his Fish Shop.
3. Visit Willy and check out the broken boat in the back room.
4. Fix the broken boat with 200 Hardwood, five Iridium Bars, and five Battery Packs.

And that’s it! After that, you’ll need to pay a fee of 1,000g and Willy will take you to Ginger Island.

The Pirate Cove

It’s not enough to simply get to Ginger Island, however. These elusive fish can only be caught in one specific location called the Pirate Cove. To find this area, you must first re-build the Island Beach Resort that’s located on the beach. To do so, you’ll need 20 Golden Walnuts. Once the resort is complete, you can travel along the water eastwards and enter a new area called the Island Southeast.

In the Island Southeast area, you’ll find a star-shaped pool of water. To the right of it, the secret entrance to the Pirate Cove can be found, as pictured below!

This dark area contains several bodies of water. In all of them, you can catch a Stingray. Happy fishing!

How To Catch A Stingray

Stingrays boast a difficulty rating of 80, which means catching them is no easy feat. In order to maximize your chances of catching this fish, do the following:

• Increase your fishing level as much as possible.
• Eat food that grants +Fishing skill – You can temporarily increase your fishing skill by eating certain foods. Befriend Willy to learn the recipes for Chowder, Escargot, Fish Stew, and Lobster Bisque. You can also purchase Trout Soup from Willy at his shop for just 250g. The best +fishing food is called Seafoam Pudding.
• Purchase the Iridium Rod – You’ll need the best fishing rod to attach bait and tackles.
• Acquire the Cork Bobber tackle – The Cork Bobber is a tackle that increases the size of your fishing bar. It makes catching fish just a little bit easier!

10 Things To Do With A Stingray

1. Eat It

What to do with a fish? Eating it may seem like the natural answer to that question. However, the Stingray doesn’t give that much Energy or Food, interestingly enough. You’re better off using the Stingray for something else; but, if you’re in a pinch and need food, it’ll do.

2. Sell It

Stingrays are fairly valuable fish, fetching 360g when they’re of Iridium Quality. To further increase profits from selling this fish – and fish in general – consider grabbing the Fisher and Angler professions, at levels five and ten of the fishing skill.

3. Trade It For Seeds

You can trade one Stingray of any quality for a Mahogany Seed at the Island Trader. If you’re hankering for some hardwood, and have many Stingrays to spare, consider trading it in!

Hardwood is one of the most important and valuable materials in Stardew Valley. Mahogany Seeds allow you to grow your own Mahogany Trees, which can be cut down for Hardwood.

4. Cook It

You can use a Stingray to cook up a Sashimi dish. You can learn the recipe for Sashimi by reaching three hearts of friendship with Linus. Sashimi grants more Health and Energy than a Gold Quality Stingray, but less than an Iridium Quality one. Furthermore, Sashimi is far less valuable than a raw Stingray. Take all of these things into account before you choose to cook this meal using this fish!

You can also create the Maki Roll dish using Stingrays. You can buy the recipe for this dish from Gus at the Stardrop Saloon for 300g. This dish requires Seaweed (caught in the Ocean), Rice (purchasable from Pierre), and one fish of any kind. Maki Rolls grant both more Health and more Energy than raw Stingrays do.

In order to cook food at all, you’ll need to either upgrade your farmhouse once at the Carpenter’s Store or get a Cookout Kit. To make the latter, first, acquire level nine of the Foraging skill, then combine 10 Fiber, three Coal, and 15 Wood.

5. Craft Fertilizer

Any fish can be combined with two pieces of sap to craft Quality Fertilizer. While this is a very valuable item for any budding farmer, Stingrays are a bit too valuable for this. You should reserve lower-value fish like Carp for fertilizer.

6. Tailor with It

You can craft a dyeable shirt by combining Cloth with a Stingray on a Sewing Machine. This Sailor Shirt is dyeable – you can change the color of the little ribbon around your collar by combining the Sailor Shirt with a Rainbow Shell on the Sewing Machine. Learn more about dyeing and sewing by reading our article on it!

7. Foster a Fish Pond

Fish Ponds can be a great avenue for profit on your farm. To start a fish farm, visit Robin at the Carpenter’s Shop and build an empty Fish Pond. You’ll need 5,000g, 200 Stone, five Seaweed, and five Green Algae to build it.

Once it’s done, you can place any fish into the pond and they’ll start to multiply and produce Roe. Different fish create Roe of different kinds and of different values. As a highly valuable fish, Stingray Roe is also some of the most profitable Roe out there. For a Fish Pond, Stingrays are some of the best fish out there, alongside Sturgeon, Pufferfish, and Catfish.

In order to grow your population of fish, you’ll need to provide your fish with items they’ll request. Stingrays will only request one of two things – Cinder Shards or a Dragon Tooth. Naturally, these items can be found in the Volcano Dungeon on Ginger Island.

While all Fish Ponds produce Roe, every day the fish in your pond have a chance to produce something more special. For example, a Midnight Squid can produce Squid Ink, and a Blobfish can produce a Pearl. Here is a table of all the things your Stingrays can produce:

Of these, Roe is the most common; but luckily it’s also the most valuable. Place Roe into a Preservers Jar to craft Aged Roe. Aged Roe is worth twice the price of normal Roe. You may think that it’s better to sell the fish due to its high value, however, keep in mind that Roe will be produced forever. You can only sell a fish once!

8. Save It for Quests

Willy may request for you to catch five Stingrays as a part of a Special Order. If you succeed, you’ll gain 2,500g and a Deluxe Fish Tank furniture item. This is the biggest fish tank available, and it’ll let you display Coral, Seaweed, Stone, four bottom fish (such as Mussels, and other Crab Pot fish), and four floating fish (such as Tiger Trout, Midnight Carp, or Spook Fish).

9. Save It For The Luau

A Gold or Iridium Quality Stingray may be added to the community potluck during the Summer Luau Festival. This will greatly impresses the governor and all of the villagers in the town! You’ll gain 120 points of friendship with all villagers if use this fish.

10. Display It In A Fish Tank

And finally, you can use Stingrays to decorate your home. These tropical fish will fit right in on the Island Farm or any room in your house with an island vibe!