Manta ray

:Sea devil redirects here. For the Doctor Who monsters see Sea Devil

Related Topics:
Sea devil - Doctor Who

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The manta ray, or giant manta, is the largest of the rays, ranging up to 6.7 meters (22 ft) across its pectoral fins (or "wings") and weighing up to 1,350 kg (3,000 lbs). It ranges throughout the tropical seas of the world, typically around coral reefs. Mantas are most commonly black above and white below, but some are blue on their backs. A manta's eyes are on the top of its head, and its mouth and nostrils are on its belly. To breathe, the manta has two sets of five gills on the underside, and holes called spiracles just behind the eyes. The manta can alternate which spiracle is used for inhaling, and which for exhaling. With distinctive "horns" (also called cremoriol fins) on either side of its broad head, the manta is a prized sighting by divers.

Related Topics:
Rays - Kg - Tropical - Coral reef - Gill - Spiracle

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Mantas generally eat plankton and small fish, but anything that fits in their mouths could end up being swallowed.

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Taxonomically (which means "how something is classified"), the situation of the mantas is still under investigation. Three species have been identified: Manta birostris, Manta ehrenbergii, and Manta raya, but they are quite similar to each other, and the last two may just be isolated populations. The genus Manta is sometimes placed in its own family, Mobulidae, but this article follows FishBase, and places it in the family Myliobatidae, with the eagle rays and their relatives.

Related Topics:
FishBase - Myliobatidae - Eagle ray

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Mantas have been given a variety of common names, including Atlantic manta, Pacific manta, devil ray, devilfish, and just manta. Some people just call all members of the family stingrays.

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Mantas have recently been captured on film while breaching. This had been reported in the past, but without any conclusive evidence. In the last few years, sharks have also been photographed while leaping out of the water. As with sharks, the reason for this behavior in rays is currently unknown.

Related Topics:
Sharks - Photographed

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