Manta Ray Facts

These facts were found on www.mantaray-world.com

• They can be up to 25 feet in length and weight as much as 5,000 pounds.

• Some types of Manta Rays engage in the process of migrating.

• They can lose their protective mucus membrane if they are touched by humans.

• The Manta Ray has the largest brain to body ratio of all sharks and rays on Earth.

• You will very rarely find any Manta Ray in captivity due to their size. They are currently only found in four aquariums in the world.

• The average life span for a Manta Ray is 20 years.

• They are very close relatives of the shark. Ironically, sharks as well as whales are their main predators. They are also closely related to the stingray but they don’t have a stinger.

• They are amazing when it comes to the acrobatics that they display.

• The Manta Ray is classified as a fish. It is one of the largest and it continues to be one that we know the least about.

• They don’t have a skeleton that is made from bone.

• The smallest species of Manta Ray is the Mobula Diabolis. It is only about 2 feet in length.

• There are myths that the Manta Ray will consume people but they are false. These are very gentle creatures that are able to get close to humans without harming them.

• The Manta Ray is only surpassed in size in the marine world by sharks and whales.

• There are only four of them found in the world that are in captivity. They do well in that environment but they are so large it is very hard to justify the cost of keeping them.

• One of the reasons why people used to think that the Manta Ray was dangerous is because the body appears to be like a huge bat.

• The open fins of a Manta Ray can be more than 20 feet in length.

• While the Manta Ray has many rows of sharp teeth, they aren’t used for eating. Instead they have a filtering system.

• The Manta Ray doesn’t have a nose.

• The name Manta means blanket, and the fact that this creature looks like a blanket as it moves in the water is part of the namesake.

• The mouth of the Manta Ray is located on the top of the head instead of on the bottom.

• They are the only jawed vertebrates that also have limbs.

• In 2008 a very large Manta Ray was discovered on a sidewalk in San Francisco, California. It isn’t known how it got there or why someone would leave it. Authorities were successful in returning it to the water.

• Many people view the Manta Ray as a shark that has been flattened out due to the overall anatomy that it features.

• The movement of the fins through the water is very similar to that of a bird flapping its wings.

• Many people assume that the Manta Ray is dangerous due to the fact that the Sting Ray is. However, they don’t have a stinger at all.

• Many Manta Rays blend in well at the shoreline. They tend to get stepped on by people that don’t have a clue what is below their feet.

• They are extremely fast swimmers and also considered to be one of the most graceful as they move around. If you don’t look quickly though one can be gone before you realize it was there.