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Hotels, dive operators, gear, and how to get here are on the North Male Atoll location page.
Overview
Gently sloping outer reef on the eastern flank of Lankanfinolhu (Paradise Island), the most-visited manta cleaning station in North Malé Atoll. Three coral bommies at 10–18 m act as fixed cleaning stations where reef mantas queue for wrasse to pick parasites from gills and underside, sometimes a dozen at a time. The reef top sits at 5 m and the sand slopes off to 30 m; current usually runs north-to-south along the outside of the atoll. Eagle rays, mobulas, whitetip reef sharks and napoleon wrasse pass through. Peak action is August through November when the southwest monsoon pushes plankton up the eastern atoll wall.
Briefing note
Stay back at least 3–4 m from cleaning stations — mantas will leave if approached. Do not chase or touch. Site is open year-round but mantas are reliable only during the southwest monsoon.
What you'll see
7 species curated- seasonalReef manta rayPeak: May · Jun · Jul · Aug · Sep · Oct · Nov
- year-roundSpotted eagle ray
- year-roundWhitetip reef shark
- year-roundNapoleon wrasse
- year-roundGiant moray
- seasonalMobula rayPeak: Jun · Jul · Aug · Sep · Oct · Nov
- year-roundHawksbill turtle
Sightings evidence
1 record on file- medium confidenceReef manta ray
- Last confirmed
- May 2026
- Recent records
- 45 within 25 km
- Cluster months
- May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov
Sources & methodology
How we summarise this
We aggregate confirmed occurrence records from GBIF and OBIS within a fixed radius of each dive site. Occurrence records confirm presence and reveal seasonality clustering, but they DO NOT measure per-dive probability — there is no eligible-effort denominator. We deliberately do not publish a numeric '% chance of sighting' from this data.
Sources
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility — GBIF Secretariat
- Ocean Biodiversity Information System — IOC-UNESCO
- iNaturalist — California Academy of Sciences & National Geographic Society
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — International Union for Conservation of Nature
- Manta Trust IDtheManta Database — Manta Trust
- OBIS-SEAMAP — Duke University Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab / OBIS
- WoRMS — World Register of Marine Species — Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ)
- FishBase — FishBase Consortium
- Atlas of Living Australia — CSIRO / GBIF Australia
- REEF Volunteer Fish Survey — Reef Environmental Education Foundation
Conditions
| Month | Water | Visibility | Current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27–29 °C | 25–35 m | mild |
| Feb | 27–29 °C | 25–35 m | mild |
| Mar | 28–30 °C | 25–35 m | mild |
| Apr | 28–30 °C | 25–35 m | mild |
| May | 28–30 °C | 15–25 m | moderate |
| Jun | 27–29 °C | 10–20 m | moderate |
| Jul | 27–29 °C | 10–20 m | moderate |
| Aug | 27–29 °C | 15–25 m | strong |
| Sep | 27–29 °C | 15–25 m | strong |
| Oct | 28–30 °C | 20–30 m | moderate |
| Nov | 28–30 °C | 20–30 m | moderate |
| Dec | 27–29 °C | 25–35 m | mild |
Season calendar
Peak season highlighted · current month outlined
Gear for this site
Beyond the basic kit- Reef hook — When current runs hard along the outer reef the hook lets you settle on a rubble patch off the cleaning stations without finning over coral.
- SMB + reel — Standard exit is a drift off the outer reef; surface marker is required for boat pickup.
Next step
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