What are the “horns” on a manta’s head?

Head fins that unroll to funnel food

Can a manta ray sting you?

No, it only has a leftover spine sealed in a knob

What happens at a cleaning station?

Small fish pick off parasites and dead skin

Giant oceanic manta ray

Q: How to identify Giant oceanic manta ray?

Look at body shape, where the fins sit and their outline, mouth position, stripes and spots. Young fish and breeding adults can wear different patterns, and aquarium color varieties can look nothing like wild fish. Fish Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

Q: What does Giant oceanic manta ray eat?

These gentle giants cruise the ocean, sifting tiny organisms from the water to eat.

Q: Where is Giant oceanic manta ray usually found?

Tropical to temperate seas, from the surface to deep water

Q: How big is a giant oceanic manta ray?

It is the largest ray in the world. Its wingspan (disc width) reaches at least 7 m, most adults are 4–5 m across, and the biggest weigh about 2 tonnes. Unconfirmed reports go up to 9.1 m.

Q: Do manta rays sting or bite?

No. Mantas have no working sting: the giant manta only has a small leftover spine sealed in a knob at the base of its tail. Its tiny teeth aren’t used for eating, and it is listed as harmless to people. Still, watch from a distance and never touch or chase one.

Q: What do giant manta rays eat?

Zooplankton such as krill, copepods and shrimp, and sometimes small fish. Chemical studies in Ecuador suggest about 73% of their food comes from deep-water prey, probably caught on night dives.

Q: Why do manta rays jump out of the water?

Nobody knows for sure. Ideas include courtship displays, signals to other mantas and shaking off skin parasites.

Q: How long do manta rays live?

Probably about 40–45 years. The estimate comes from reef mantas, because giant mantas are hard to follow for their whole lives.

Q: Are giant manta rays endangered?

Yes. The IUCN lists the giant oceanic manta ray as Endangered, mainly because of fishing for its gill plates and bycatch. Many countries protect it, and international trade is controlled under CITES.

Q: What is the difference between a giant manta and a reef manta?

The giant manta is bigger (at least 7 m against about 4.3 m), lives more in the open ocean, and has sharp T-shaped shoulder patches, a dark mouth and belly spots mostly low on the belly. The reef manta has blurrier Y- or V-shaped patches, a white mouth and spots between its gill slits.

Mobula birostris

The giant oceanic manta ray (Mobula birostris), also called the oceanic or giant manta, is the largest ray in the world, with a wingspan of at least 7 m. It filter-feeds on zooplankton in tropical, subtropical and temperate seas, often diving deep at night to find food. Long placed in its own genus, Manta, it was moved to Mobula, alongside the devil rays, in 2018.

Also known as Oceanic manta ray, Giant manta ray, Pacific manta ray

Giant manta ray abilities

≈73% of its food from the deep
Mouth wide open and head fins unrolled, a giant manta funnels plankton-rich water through its gills and sieves out the food.
- Its prey includes krill, copepods, shrimp, crab and shrimp larvae, fish eggs and sometimes small fish.
- Chemical clues in the muscles of giant mantas from Ecuador suggest that on average about 73% of their food comes from deep-water prey, and only 27% from surface plankton.
- The filter uses “ricochet separation”: food bounces off it instead of clogging it.
- Mantas feed in several ways, including tight somersaults and long head-to-tail feeding chains.
Where its food comes from (Ecuador)
Deep-water (mesopelagic) prey≈73%
Surface plankton≈27%
Average of four models; the deep-water share ranged from 57% to 88%.
Sources [1, 3, 6, 7, 20]
3 pairs of paired fins
Cruising, a manta keeps its head fins rolled up like horns. To feed, it unrolls them into paddles on either side of its mouth.
- When feeding, mantas hold their head fins in an “O” shape and open the mouth wide.
- In captive giant mantas, the way the fins were held showed whether a manta was ready to feed, prompted by the sight or smell of food.
- With these head fins, manta rays have three pairs of appendages: wings, pelvic fins and head fins.
- Rolled up, they look like horns, which is where old names such as “devil ray” come from.
Sources [2, 3, 21]
2,803 mantas identified in Ecuador
The spots on a manta’s white belly form a pattern unique to each animal. Divers’ photos work like fingerprints.
- Researchers in Ecuador told apart 2,803 different giant mantas from belly photos taken in 2005–2018.
- Software such as Manta Matcher compares a new belly photo with a whole database of them.
- Photo-ID lets scientists count mantas and follow individuals without touching them.
- The patterns are thought to last for life, but two captive mantas hint that they may change as a manta grows, so researchers stay careful.
Sources [3, 14, 22, 23]
3 leading ideas whyStill debated
Mantas sometimes leap clear of the water and crash back down. Nobody knows for sure why.
- Ideas include courtship displays, signals to other mantas and shaking off skin parasites.
- During courtship, a female racing ahead of a line of males may even leap from the water.
- Smaller devil ray relatives leap more than 2 m into the air, sometimes in their thousands. Scientists think that is mostly communication.
Sources [1, 11, 21]
1,082 m deepest tagged dive
By day a giant manta often stays near the surface. At night it dives deep, following plankton that rises and sinks every day.
- A satellite-tagged giant manta off Japan reached 1,082 m. Tags show the species can dive deeper than 1,000 m.
- Off Peru, tagged mantas stayed in the top 2 m by day and swam up and down through the water at night, coming back up to warm up.
- In New Zealand, tagged mantas spent most of their time shallower than 5 m, with occasional dives to 365 m.
- A heat-exchanging net of blood vessels around the brain may help it cope with cold, deep water.
Giant manta dives
Deepest tagged dive (Japan)1,082 m
Common night dives200–450 m
Occasional dives (New Zealand)365 m
Daytime cruising (Peru)< 2 m
From satellite tags. Most of the time is spent near the surface.
Sources [3, 19, 24, 25, 26]
122 g brain of a 165 kg mantaStill debated
Mantas have big brains for fish. How clever they are, and why the brain is so big, are still debated.
- In a 2011 study, a giant manta’s 122 g brain was the heaviest of any fish measured so far, though for its body size it was about average.
- A net of blood vessels around the brain may warm it. One scientist suggests the big brain itself makes heat, helping it work in cold water.
- Captive giant mantas seemed to learn where food would appear, as if building a mental map.
- A 2016 aquarium study reported mantas acting unusually in front of a mirror. Other scientists criticised it, so self-recognition in mantas is not proven.
Sources [3, 18, 19, 27, 28, 29]
7 m+ wingspan
The biggest ray in the world. Its “wings” (pectoral fins) span at least 7 m, and it flies through the water by flapping them.
- Most adults measure 4–5 m across. Unconfirmed reports go up to 9.1 m.
- The biggest weigh about 2 tonnes.
- Females grow bigger than males.
- It can never stop swimming, because water must keep flowing over its gills.
Wingspan
Giant oceanic manta (at least)7 m+
Atlantic manta (largest measured)4.8 m
Reef manta (largest measured)4.3 m
Sources [4, 11, 12, 16, 30, 31]
≈2,500 km longest tracked tripStill debated
Some giant mantas have been tracked swimming well over 1,000 km. Others stay in one region for years. How far most of them roam is still being worked out.
- Tagged giant mantas have travelled from Mozambique to South Africa (1,100 km), from Peru to the Galápagos (about 1,300 km), and from New Zealand about 2,500 km into the Pacific and back.
- But mantas tagged at four Indo-Pacific sites made no long migrations, and their genes and diets suggest they stay in their home areas for years.
- Genetic studies find giant mantas around the world more closely connected than reef mantas.
- No photo-ID match has yet shown a manta crossing from one ocean to another.
Longest tracked trips
New Zealand → Pacific and back≈2,500 km
Peru → Galápagos≈1,300 km
Mozambique → South Africa1,100 km
Young manta in the Red Sea525 km
Sources [3, 32, 33]

Tap a pin on the model or a part below.

3 pairs of paired fins
- These “horns” are cephalic (head) fins. Rolled up while cruising, they unroll into paddles that funnel plankton into the mouth.
- NOAA notes that they make manta rays the only animals with a backbone that have three pairs of appendages.
- In captive giant mantas, the way they were held showed whether a manta was ready to feed.
Sources [1, 2, 3]
Dark inside, unlike a reef manta
- Wide and right at the front of the head.
- In giant mantas the mouth is shaded dark grey to black. Reef mantas have a white mouth.
- It has tiny teeth, but they aren’t used for feeding.
- Stomachs from the Philippines held krill, copepods and small lanternfish.
Sources [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
5 pairs of gill slits
- Five pairs of gill slits sit on the underside.
- Inside, gill plates sieve out the food. Food “ricochets” off the filter instead of clogging it, so even bits smaller than the gaps are caught.
- These gill plates are what fishers are after: dried, they are sold as a tonic in some Asian markets.
Sources [3, 7, 8, 9]
- One on each side of the head.
- Captive giant mantas got ready to feed at the sight or the smell of food.
- In captive mantas, the skin around the eyes could lighten or darken within minutes.
Sources [2, 3, 10]
T shaped shoulder marks
- Black, with two white triangular shoulder patches whose front edges form a straight line: a black “T”. Reef mantas have a blurrier “Y” or “V”.
- The skin is covered in tiny prickly denticles, rougher than a reef manta’s.
- Some giant mantas are almost all black (melanistic), and a few are mostly white (leucistic).
- In captive mantas, the white patches brightened or faded within minutes before feeding and during social encounters.
Sources [3, 4, 10, 11, 12, 13]
1 of a kind spot pattern
- White, with dark spots mostly on the lower belly. Giant mantas rarely have spots between the gill slits.
- Each manta’s spot pattern is unique, so photos of bellies identify individuals.
- The back edges of the wings are shaded grey underneath.
- Giant remoras often hitch a ride, usually one or two at a time on giant mantas in the Maldives.
Sources [2, 3, 4, 14, 15]
7 m+ wingspan
- The “wings” are huge pectoral fins: at least 7 m from tip to tip, with unconfirmed reports up to 9.1 m.
- Most adults measure 4–5 m across, and females grow bigger than males.
- A manta flaps them to “fly” through the water, and it can never stop: it needs water flowing over its gills to breathe.
Sources [4, 11, 16]
0 working stings
- Short and whip-like.
- At its base is a knob-like bulge with a leftover (vestigial) spine inside. It cannot sting.
- Only the giant manta has this tail thorn. Reef mantas don’t.
Sources [3, 4, 17]
122 g in a 165 kg manta
- In a 2011 study, a 165 kg giant manta had a 122 g brain, the heaviest of any fish measured so far.
- For its body size, though, the brain was about as big as expected.
- A net of blood vessels around the brain (a rete mirabile) may work like a heat exchanger and keep the brain warm in cold, deep water.
Sources [3, 18, 19]

Real giant manta rays

Photos from Wikimedia Commons. Two of them can repaint the 3D model.

Chevron giant mantaBlack back with two white triangular shoulder patches that make a black “T”. White belly with dark spots on the lower belly.The usual colour formThe chevron form: a black “T” between white shoulder patches. Ko Lanta, Thailand. Photo: Lakshmi Sawitri, CC BY 2.0
Black (melanistic) giant mantaBlack on top and almost all black underneath, apart from some white around and behind the gill slits.From none to about 4 in 10 mantas, depending on the population (both manta species)A black (melanistic) giant manta at Socorro, Mexico. Photo: Steve Laycock, CC BY-SA 4.0
The white underside of a chevron giant manta, Socorro, MexicoPhoto: Steve Laycock, CC BY-SA 4.0
Gill slits, belly spots and a hitchhiking remoraPhoto: Lakshmi Sawitri, CC BY 2.0
Heading to a cleaning station, Ko Lanta, ThailandPhoto: Lakshmi Sawitri, CC BY 2.0
A giant manta passes over a diver at Socorro, MexicoPhoto: Elias Levy, CC BY 2.0
Giant manta in Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, ThailandPhoto: Daniel Sasse, CC BY-SA 4.0
T-shaped shoulder marks on a giant manta in the Galápagos, EcuadorPhoto: Georgina Jones, CC BY-SA 4.0

Giant manta ray by the numbers

Measured by scientists and tagging studies, with comparisons you can picture.

Wingspan: 7 m+; disc width; most adults are 4–5 m; A reef manta tops out at about 4.3 m⁠[16, 4, 12]
Weight: ≈2 t; for the biggest; an old 1916 record claims 2.7 t⁠[4, 16]
Deepest dive: 1,082 m; tagged manta off Japan; night dives often reach 200–450 m⁠[24, 3]
Longest trip: ≈2,500 km; tracked from New Zealand over 310 days⁠[3]
Brain: 122 g; in a 165 kg giant manta⁠[18]
Deep food: ≈73%; of the diet from deep-water prey (Ecuador)⁠[20]; Deep-water prey73 %Surface plankton27 %
Newborn: 1–2 m; wide at birth; one pup at a time; Grows to 7 m or more⁠[3, 16]
Pregnancy: 12–13 months; estimated from reef manta data⁠[3]
Grown up: ≈8.6 yrs; female age at maturity; first pup at about 12.6 years⁠[36]
Lifespan: ≈40–45 yrs; estimated, based on reef mantas⁠[4, 2, 3]

Giant manta ray myths and facts

Tap Myth or Fact for each claim, then check the answer.

0 of 8 answered

“Manta rays can sting you, like stingrays.”
“Manta rays are dangerous “devilfish”.”
“The giant manta is the biggest fish in the sea.”
“Every manta has its own belly pattern, like a fingerprint.”
“Manta rays have the biggest brain for their body size of any cold-blooded fish.”
“Manta rays recognise themselves in a mirror.”
“Giant mantas can swim more than 1,000 km.”
“Manta gill plates are an ancient medicine.”

Giant manta ray records

Superlatives and record holders, each checked against its source.

Largest ray in the world
7 m+
Giant oceanic manta ray
disc width; unconfirmed reports up to 9.1 m⁠[16, 2]
Heaviest fish brain (2011 study)
122 g
A 165 kg giant manta
the heaviest of all fish measured so far, though average for its body size⁠[18]
Largest known population
≈22,316
Coastal Ecuador and Peru
estimated from 2,803 mantas photo-identified in 2005–2018⁠[22]
World’s largest manta sanctuary
≈6 million km²
Indonesia (2014)
fishing and trade of both manta species banned in all Indonesian waters⁠[3]
Longest tracked trip (NOAA review)
≈2,500 km
A giant manta tagged in New Zealand
travelled north-east over 310 days, then came back⁠[3]
Among the slowest to recover
1 of the lowest of 106
Manta rays
maximum population growth rate, compared with 106 sharks and rays⁠[39]

Life of a giant manta ray

A slow life: one big pup at a time, and a long wait to grow up.

Birth
One big pup
After a pregnancy of about 12–13 months, a mother gives birth to a single pup about 1–2 m wide, with its wings rolled up. It can swim properly after a few minutes.⁠[3, 1, 21]
From day one
On its own
Mantas get no care from their mother. Young mantas turn up in shallow coastal waters in a few places, which may act as nurseries.⁠[3, 1]
≈3.5–4 m wide
Males grow up
Males become adults at about 3.5–4 m across.⁠[3, 36]
≈8.6 years
Females grow up
Females mature later and bigger, at about 4.5 m across.⁠[36, 3]
Courtship
Courtship trains
Several males follow a female in a long line. In the Maldives, 90% of manta courtship was seen at cleaning stations.⁠[1, 35]
≈12.6 years
First pup
In the Philippines, females had their first pup up to 4 years after growing up, at about 12–13 years old.⁠[36]
Every 2–5 years
Another pup
Most estimates give one pup every 2–5 years, so a female may have only 4–7 pups in her whole life.⁠[11, 2, 3]
≈40–45 years
A long life
Lifespan is estimated at about 40–45 years, based on reef mantas.⁠[4, 2, 3]

Giant manta cleaning stations

Cleaning stations are spots on a reef where small fish pick parasites and dead skin off bigger visitors. Giant mantas come too, and many come back.

3
cleaner fish to know
Among the cleaners of giant mantas are bluestreak cleaner wrasse, moon wrasse and, in Mexico, clarion angelfish.⁠[3, 1]
23
mantas came back
In Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 23 giant mantas returned to the same cleaning stations in at least two different years, even though giant mantas visit them less than reef mantas do.⁠[3, 4]
7 of 15
regular visitors
At Monad Shoal, a seamount in the Philippines, 7 of 15 identified giant mantas were back in the following year.⁠[3]
90%
of courtship at cleaning sites
Cleaning stations are meeting places too: in the Maldives, 90% of 229 manta courtship events happened at them.⁠[35]
Feed or clean?
a daily choice
In the Philippines, mantas visited cleaning stations when the sea was poor for feeding, and stayed away when plankton gathered.⁠[40]

Are giant manta rays endangered?

Yes. Fishing for their gill plates, and as bycatch, has caused steep declines, and mantas breed too slowly to bounce back fast.

IUCN Red List

Endangered (EN)

Population decreasing

Listed as Endangered because populations have fallen and are expected to keep falling, mainly because of fishing. The United States also lists it as Threatened (2018).⁠[41, 17, 2]

IUCN Red List 2022 (assessed November 2019)

Threats

Gill-plate trade≈130,000
Dried gill plates are sold as a tonic called pengyusai. In 2013 the biggest market, in Guangzhou, China, used an estimated 130,000 manta and devil rays a year (about 4% of them mantas).⁠[8, 9]
Caught by accident30 fisheries
Mantas get caught in nets and lines meant for other fish: one review found 30 fisheries in 23 countries catching manta and devil rays as bycatch, and 13 targeting them.⁠[42, 2]
Steep local declines−89%
At Cocos Island, Costa Rica, divers saw 89% fewer mantas over two decades, even inside a protected park. Manta landings in parts of Indonesia fell by 71–95%.⁠[43, 3]
Slow breeders1 pup
One pup every few years means very slow recovery: manta rays have one of the lowest population growth rates of 106 sharks and rays compared.⁠[39, 36]
Boats and ropes
Mantas spend much of their time near the surface, where boats can hit them and ropes, nets and rubbish can tangle them.⁠[2, 25]

What’s helping

Trade rulesCITES II
Since 2014, international trade in giant manta products needs permits under CITES Appendix II. Giant mantas have also been on both appendices of the Convention on Migratory Species since 2011.⁠[2, 44]
National protection≈6 million km²
The Philippines (1998), Ecuador (2010), New Zealand (2010) and Indonesia (2014) are among the countries that protect giant mantas. Indonesia’s waters became the world’s largest manta sanctuary.⁠[3]
Worth more aliveUS$140 million
Manta-watching tourism in 23 countries brings in about US$140 million a year. Over its life one manta can be worth up to US$1.9 million to tourism, far more than its gill plates.⁠[45, 3]
Photos help
Divers’ belly photos help scientists count mantas. NOAA asks people to report sightings with photos and to watch mantas from a distance.⁠[2, 23]

Manta and devil ray cousins

Reef manta ray (Mobula alfredi)Vulnerable
The smaller manta of coastal reefs in the Indian and west Pacific oceans, also fished for its gill plates.⁠[46, 12]
Sicklefin devil ray (Mobula tarapacana)Critically Endangered
A large devil ray relative, listed as Critically Endangered in 2025.⁠[47]
Spinetail devil ray (Mobula mobular)Critically Endangered
Another devil ray relative, listed as Critically Endangered in 2025.⁠[48]

Giant manta vs reef manta vs whale shark

Two mantas and the giant shark that also filter-feeds. Check the shoulders and the mouth to tell the mantas apart.

Giant oceanic manta ray vs reef manta ray vs whale shark
	Giant oceanic manta	Reef manta	Whale shark
Scientific name⁠[49, 50, 12, 38]	Mobula birostris	Mobula alfredi	Rhincodon typus
What it is⁠[16, 38]	Ray (the largest)	Ray	Shark (the largest fish)
Biggest size⁠[16, 12]	7 m+ wide	≈4.3 m wide	18.8 m long
Where it lives⁠[4, 3, 12, 11, 38]	Open ocean; visits coasts, islands and seamounts	Coastal reefs and atolls, Indian and west Pacific oceans	Open sea, often near the surface; also near coasts
Shoulder marks⁠[4, 11, 12, 13, 38]	Sharp white triangles making a “T”	Blurrier “Y” or “V” shape	Pale spots and stripes all over
Belly spots⁠[4, 12, 38]	Mostly lower belly; rarely between gills	Often between the gill slits	None (white belly)
Mouth⁠[3, 38]	Dark	White to light grey	Huge, at the front of the head
Food⁠[20, 12, 38]	Zooplankton, much of it from deep water	Zooplankton	Plankton, fish eggs, small fish, sometimes squid
Young⁠[11, 1, 51, 38]	1 pup every 2–5 years	1 pup, usually every 2–3 years	One female carried 300 young
IUCN status⁠[41, 46, 52]	Endangered	Vulnerable	Endangered

A third manta, the Atlantic manta ray (Mobula yarae) of the Caribbean and the Atlantic coasts of the Americas, was described in 2025. It looks like the giant manta but is smaller.

Giant manta ray quiz

12 questions. Every answer is somewhere on this page.

Question 1 of 12Score 0

How wide can a giant oceanic manta’s wings get?

Giant oceanic manta ray field notes

Diet, food web, safety and badges from the Snappit field guide.

Diet & Feeding

These gentle giants cruise the ocean, sifting tiny organisms from the water to eat.

Primary Foods

Zooplankton
Copepods
Krill
Fish eggs
Foraging Method: Filter feeding

Ecological connections

cleaner wrasseSymbiotic with
Wrasses clean parasites off mantas at special 'cleaning stations'.
killer whaleEaten by
Orcas are rare predators of large marine animals like mantas.
copepodsEats
Manta rays filter tiny copepods, along with krill and other plankton, out of the water.

Safety

Danger 0/5 · No known danger

Watch quietly from a distance and never try to feed or chase wild animals.

Traits

Collections

Fish

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Elasmobranchii
Order: Myliobatiformes
Family: Mobulidae
Genus: Mobula

Also known as

Oceanic manta ray · Giant manta ray · Pacific manta ray · Pelagic manta ray · Chevron manta ray · Devilfish (old name) · Giant Manta

Sources for these giant manta ray facts

53 studies and references · checked Oct 16, 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

How to identify Giant oceanic manta ray?

Look at body shape, where the fins sit and their outline, mouth position, stripes and spots. Young fish and breeding adults can wear different patterns, and aquarium color varieties can look nothing like wild fish. Fish Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

How long is Giant oceanic manta ray?

400-700 cm

How much does Giant oceanic manta ray weigh?

1000-2000 kg

How long does Giant oceanic manta ray live?

40-45 years

What does Giant oceanic manta ray eat?

These gentle giants cruise the ocean, sifting tiny organisms from the water to eat.

Where is Giant oceanic manta ray usually found?

Tropical to temperate seas, from the surface to deep water

How does Giant oceanic manta ray hunt?

Filter feeding

How deep can Giant oceanic manta ray go?

1082 m

How big is a giant oceanic manta ray?

It is the largest ray in the world. Its wingspan (disc width) reaches at least 7 m, most adults are 4–5 m across, and the biggest weigh about 2 tonnes. Unconfirmed reports go up to 9.1 m.

Do manta rays sting or bite?

No. Mantas have no working sting: the giant manta only has a small leftover spine sealed in a knob at the base of its tail. Its tiny teeth aren’t used for eating, and it is listed as harmless to people. Still, watch from a distance and never touch or chase one.

What do giant manta rays eat?

Zooplankton such as krill, copepods and shrimp, and sometimes small fish. Chemical studies in Ecuador suggest about 73% of their food comes from deep-water prey, probably caught on night dives.

Why do manta rays jump out of the water?

Nobody knows for sure. Ideas include courtship displays, signals to other mantas and shaking off skin parasites.

How long do manta rays live?

Probably about 40–45 years. The estimate comes from reef mantas, because giant mantas are hard to follow for their whole lives.

Are giant manta rays endangered?

Yes. The IUCN lists the giant oceanic manta ray as Endangered, mainly because of fishing for its gill plates and bycatch. Many countries protect it, and international trade is controlled under CITES.

What is the difference between a giant manta and a reef manta?

The giant manta is bigger (at least 7 m against about 4.3 m), lives more in the open ocean, and has sharp T-shaped shoulder patches, a dark mouth and belly spots mostly low on the belly. The reef manta has blurrier Y- or V-shaped patches, a white mouth and spots between its gill slits.

Why is it called a manta?

Manta is Spanish for a blanket or cloak, which is what the wide, flat ray looks like. Old names such as devilfish and devil ray come from its horn-like head fins.