Manta Ray

Mobula alfredi

The reef manta ray is a member of the family Mobulidae and ranks among the largest rays on Earth. Of the generally accepted species it is the third largest, exceeded only by the giant oceanic manta and the Atlantic manta.

Family

Mobulidae

Avg Size

300-450 cm

Habitat

It is widely spread through tropical and subtropical parts of the Indo-Pacific, with a handful of records from the warm eastern Atlantic but none from the western Atlantic or eastern Pacific. It can be seen in many popular destinations, including Hawaii, Fiji, French Polynesia, Micronesia, Bali, Komodo, the Maldives, Mozambique, Australia and the Philippines. Mainly a coastal animal, it stays fairly settled, keeping to set cleaning and feeding areas near coasts, reefs or islands and making only short movements to follow zooplankton.

Behaviour

The reef manta lives a pelagic life, feeding by filtering seawater to capture zooplankton. Research suggests it can live at least 50 years, and like the oceanic manta it has the largest brain, both in weight and relative to body size, of any cold-blooded fish. Some populations form social communities, and off New Caledonia individuals have been recorded diving to 672 m in search of food, helped by countercurrent heat-exchange structures (rete mirabile) in the pectoral fins that may let them cope with the cold depths. Like the oceanic manta, it is ovoviviparous.

Where & When to See It

Thomas Reef

Manta Ray

Where & When to See It

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