Oceanic Manta Ray
Mobula birostris
Sighting evidence at Manta Reef Inhambane, Inhambane
Photo: Programa Marino del Golfo de California · CC BY-NC
Larger oceanic mantas visit opportunistically between November and February when offshore productivity spikes, dwarfing their reef cousins with wingspans exceeding 5 metres. These individuals tend to pass through rather than linger at the cleaning station, making sightings more fleeting but even more dramatic. Encounters occur most reliably at dawn when the animals move inshore to feed on surface plankton aggregations.
Evidence at this site
No confirmed records on file at this site
Oceanic Manta Ray is listed as a curated species here based on historical reports.