Giant manta ray

Photographer of the Week – Shawn Heinrichs

More than 95 percent of the ocean deep remains unexplored by mankind, shrouded in mystery and folklore. It’s only been in recent years that we’ve realized the extent to which we have destroyed marine life, but with growing concern over the fate of our planet’s water, we’ve also come to know and to protect some of the most rare and exquisite species on the planet.

The Giant Oceanic Manta Ray (Mobula birostris) is a species of ray in the family Mobulidae, and the largest type of ray in the world. They are circumglobal and are typically found in tropical and subtropical waters, but can also be found in temperate waters. Until 2017, giant mantas were classified in the genus Manta, along with the smaller reef manta (Mobula alfredi). DNA testing revealed that both species are more closely related to rays of the genus Mobula than previously thought. As a…

Stingrays travel Together

Two giant manta rays dancing together in the waters off of Maui. #adventurehawaii 📸@bayday808

Lewis Burnett's powerful photographs of a saltwater crocodile, Risso's dolphins and a reef manta ray are part of a collection that won him the Portfolio prize in the 2023 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition

All you ever wanted to know about giant manta rays. How to tell them appart, where to see them, what they eat as well as photos of Oceanic mantas jumping and swimming next to our divers in Burma