#MarineWildlife - Bray’s National Sea Life aquarium has announced the birth of Ireland’s first tropical stingray, as TheJournal.ie reports.

The junior Atlantic cownose ray was born a month ago but staff at the North Co Wicklow marine wildlife centre wanted to ensure it was healthy before making the announcement.

About 30cm long, the ray is one of a ‘near threatened’ species that only reproduces once a year. It has also yet to be named, as its sex won’t be determined for a while yet, but is presumed to be female.

And she’s already making friends with the aquarium’s visitors, with National Sea Life managing director Pat Ó Súilleabháin saying: “She comes right up to the edge of the tank to say hello.”

In other marine wildlife news, the carcass of a porpoise was found on a river bank in Newry last weekend, according to the Belfast Telegraph.

Animal rescuers responding to public concerns said the harbour porpoise had likely been dead for some time but was no cause for alarm for the health of a known group of porpoise in nearby Carlingford Lough.

Harbour porpoise, like their dolphin cousins, are sometimes found swimming upriver in estuaries or coastal areas – and it’s not unheard of to see them hundreds of miles inland from the sea.

#MARINE WILDLIFE - There's still a week left to check out the Shark Week celebrations at Sea Life Bray.

Till 4 November the centre on the promenade in Bray, Co Wicklow will be hosting events that take a closer look at one of nature's most magnificent but misunderstood creatures.

In an urgent bid for shark conservation, Sea Life is supporting the UK-based Shark Trust by throwing the spotlight on sharks - raising awareness about the wide range of shark species in British and Irish waters, and the challenges they and other marine wildlife are facing.

Kids can get involved with badge making, puzzles and games, shark-related quizzes and activity sheets, and even see the centre's sharks - which include bonnet head shark, leopard shark and blacktop reef shark - get their dinner at the shark feeding times!

The full timetable for Shark Week related events at Sea Life Bray is available HERE.