Marine manty. Manta or giant sea devil (manta birostris)

The manta ray is one of the largest fish found in the oceans. Due to the unusual arrangement of the pectoral fins, which form peculiar horns on the head, the name “sea devil fish” has stuck to the manta. But there is nothing "devilish" in their lifestyle and behavior. These are peaceful and calm creatures, as well as those that feed on plankton, straining it out of the water.

In the fish system, the manta ray (scientific name Manta birostris) is in the class cartilaginous fish. It belongs to the order of tail-shaped stingrays (without a poisonous spike on the tail) and the bracken family, within which there is a subfamily of horned ones (the second name is manta rays, Mobulidae).

The name horned comes from the similarity of the processes located on the head with horns. And the Eagle family probably got its name from the wide pectoral fins that resemble the spread wings of an eagle. When the eagle stingray swims, it looks like a huge underwater bird, because the movements of its fins resemble the movements of wings.

Features of the lifestyle of the sea devil

The manta ray is found in the waters of all oceans (except the Arctic). It inhabits the marine areas of the tropics and subtropics, and is partially found in the temperate zone. The boundaries of its distribution are 35 degrees north and south of the equator. The way of life is pelagic, having some features:

They swim, flapping their large, slightly elongated pectoral fins, like wings.. Being far from the coast, they swim in a straight line at a constant speed, in shallow water they often rest on the water or slowly circle in place.

The manta ray fish is known for its ability to jump high out of the water (up to one and a half meters high). When a large specimen falls onto the water after a jump, a sound is heard, similar to thunder, which is heard for several miles in the area.

Appearance, nutritional features and enemies

The pectoral fins of the devil fish are huge, due to which the shape of the disk (body) looks like an elongated rhombus. The distance from the tip of one pectoral fin to the tip of the second is more than 2 times the length of the body of this stingray fish. The maximum recorded span of manta fins is about 9 meters, the average is 4.5 meters.

The manta ray fish has three pairs of limbs that are actively functioning, which is an exception for vertebrates:

• Pelvic fins shifted towards the tail.
• A pair of pectoral fins that the manta ray flaps like wings when swimming.
• Head fins, which are an elongated front of the pectoral. They are quite long and play an important role in obtaining food.

The head fins of manta rays are usually coiled and look like spiral "horns". They straighten out in order to direct the flow of water along with planktonic organisms directly into the open mouth.

Plankton mining

The devil fish is equipped with a huge mouth located on the front of the head. For this position of the mouth is an exception, because in all other representatives of this superorder, the mouth opening is located below. Small teeth in the form of tubercles are located in rows on the lower jaw (toothless upper). The central part of the jaw bears 18 dentitions, towards the corners of the mouth the number of dentitions is reduced to 12.

By way of feeding, this giant sea devil is a harmless filter feeder. It has a good apparatus for straining plankton: brownish-pink plates with a spongy structure, located between the gill arches, which trap plankton (crustaceans and small fish). The sea devil fish needs to swim long distances to search for food, following the plankton, which does not stand still, but constantly moves.

Sight and smell are the main senses that help mantas to search for food. The feeding process is very interesting:

• At first, this huge fish slowly moves around the accumulation of plankton, driving it into a large pile.
• Then the stingray accelerates and quickly swims with its mouth wide open to the center of this cluster.
• Long head fins, which are folded during normal movement, help to direct water along with food into the mouth.

When a very large concentration of planktonic organisms is encountered, the giant sea devil can fall into a state of feeding frenzy, as is observed in sharks.

Enemies in their natural habitat

At sea, the manta ray can be attacked by killer whales and large sharks (blunt-nosed, and).

How do they reproduce?

Like all giant sea devils, it reproduces by ovoviviparity. Fertilized eggs develop in the mother's body, where offspring hatch, and then the female gives birth to one cub, ready for independent life.

Manta rays become sexually mature when they reach the age of 5-6 years. The breeding season lasts from December to April. At this time, interesting mating behavior is observed in fish:

• First, one or several males chase the tail of the female for 20-30 minutes and attack her several times.
• Then one of the males, approaching the female, grabs the edge of her pectoral fin with his mouth and turns his partner upside down.
• Mating then occurs: the male's pterygopodia is introduced into the female's cloaca. In this position, they can be within one to two minutes.

Manta rays mate in the upper layer of water. One or two males can mate with one female and fertilize her.

embryo development

Developing in the maternal organism in a special organ similar to the "womb" of mammals, the embryo initial stage receives nutrition from the yolk sac. These nutrients is not enough for the full development of the body of a small stingray, therefore, after some time, a source of additional nutrients from the mother is connected. Through specialized structures that are formed in the "womb", the embryo begins to receive a fluid enriched with fat and protein components.

The manta embryo takes a very long time to develop (approximately one year).

Young stingrays are very large at birth: the disc is more than one meter wide (up to 130 centimeters). Weight can be from 9 to 12 kilograms. A female manta gives birth to one cub (rarely - two). This occurs in shallow water, where over the next few years the young feed.

Long-term bearing of offspring and a small number of juveniles born are one of the reasons for the vulnerability of this stingray and the decline in numbers. This trend has been observed over the past two decades (due to overfishing). Therefore, the giant sea devil has received the status of "vulnerable species" from the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

The manta ray is a sea giant, the largest among the known stingrays, and perhaps the most harmless. Due to its size and formidable appearance, many legends have been composed about it, which are mostly fiction.

The dimensions of the manta are very impressive, adults reach 2 meters, 8 meters is the span of the fins, the weight of the fish is up to two tons. But not only the large size gives the fish a formidable look, the head fins, in the process of evolution, stretched out and resemble horns. Perhaps that is why they are also called "sea devils", although the purpose of the "horns" is more peaceful, stingrays use their fins to direct plankton into their mouths. The mouth of a manta reaches one meter in diameter.. Having decided to eat, the stingray swims with its mouth wide open, with its fins it drives water with small fish and plankton into it. In the mouth, the stingray has a filtering apparatus, the same as that of the whale shark. Through it, water and plankton are filtered, food is sent to the stomach, the skate releases water through the gill slits.

The habitat of manta rays is the tropical waters of all oceans. The back of the fish is painted black, and the belly is snow-white, with an individual number of spots for each individual, thanks to this color it is well camouflaged in the water.

In November, they have mating time, and divers observe a very curious picture. The female swims surrounded by a whole string of "admirers", sometimes their number reaches twelve. Males swim after the female at high speed, repeating her every movement.

The female bears a cub for 12 months, and gives birth to only one. After that, he takes a break for one or two years. What explains these breaks is unknown, perhaps this time is needed to restore strength. The process of childbirth proceeds in an unusual way, the female quickly releases the cub rolled up into a roll, then it unfolds its fins-wings and swims after the mother. Newborn manta rays weigh up to 10 kilograms and are one meter long.

The brain of the manta is large, the ratio of the weight of the brain to the total body weight is much larger than that of other fish. They are smart and very curious, easily tamed. On the islands of the Indian Ocean, divers from all over the world gather to swim in the company of the manta ray. Often they show their curiosity at the sight of an unknown object on the surface, emerge, drift nearby, observe the events taking place.

In natural nature, the sea devil has almost no enemies, with the exception of carnivorous sharks, and even they attack almost only young animals. In addition to their large size, the sea devil has no protection from enemies, the stinging spike characteristic of electric stingrays is either absent or present in a residual state and does not pose any threat to anyone.

Giant stingray meat is nutritious and tasty, liver is a special delicacy. In addition, meat is used in Chinese traditional medicine. Hunting them is beneficial to poor local fishermen, although it is associated with a considerable risk to life. The manta ray is considered a critically endangered species..

There was a belief that manta rays were able to attack a person in the water, wrap their fins around them, drag them to the bottom and swallow the victim. In Southeast Asia, a meeting with a sea devil was considered a bad sign and promised many misfortunes. Local fishermen, having accidentally caught a cub, immediately released it. Perhaps that is why the population with low reproduction has survived to this day.

In fact, a manta ray can only harm a person when it descends into the water after jumping out of the water. With its large body, it can hook a swimmer or a boat.

Jumping over water is another amazing feature of giant stingrays. The jump reaches a height of 1.5 meters above the surface of the water, and then, followed by a dive with the strongest noise caused by the body of a two-ton giant hitting the water. This noise can be heard at a distance of several kilometers. But, according to eyewitnesses, the spectacle is magnificent.

Giant stingrays are also beautiful under water, easily flapping their fins, like wings, as if they are floating in the water.

Only five of the largest aquariums in the world have sea devils. And there is even the case of the birth of a cub in captivity, in a Japanese aquarium in 2007. This news spread around all countries and was shown on television, which testifies to the love of man for these amazing creatures.

The size of this harmless animal is truly amazing. The only predator that can attack the sea devil is large carnivorous sharks. Mantas have nothing as a defensive weapon. They do not have sharp spikes like stingrays, and do not produce electrical discharges like some rays. Therefore, the attack can end tragically for the manta.

But a person became convinced of the safety of these animals quite recently, and in the 60s of the 20th century. sea ​​devils appeared before people in the form of bloodthirsty creatures. Feature films were even made where manta rays appeared as killers.

But getting to know them better, it becomes clear that they are not murderers. Manta rays feed on plankton, larvae and very small fish. They filter out this trifle in the likeness of whales - swimming with their mouths wide open, they filter the water, leaving food in their mouths.

The brain of the sea devil is larger than that of other rays or sharks. For their intelligence, docile nature and tameness, manta rays are well-deserved love among divers around the world who come to the islands of the Indian Ocean to swim side by side with manta rays. In addition, they are quite curious. When an interesting object appears on the surface, it emerges and drifts on the waves, watching what is happening. Maybe that's why in ancient times the meeting of a boat with a huge "carpet" that looks at you with an interested look, and gave rise to a wary attitude towards the sea devil?

Another feature of the manta is its jumping over water. It is not clear exactly what the purpose of the devil is, jumping 1.5 m above the surface of the water. His deafening landing of a 2-ton body can be heard for several kilometers around, and is it possible that this is the purpose of the jump - to attract a partner or to silence small surface fish?

By the way, the sea devil breeds very rarely. The female gives birth to one cub, which is already born longer than 1 m. A young devil is born rolled into a tube, but, having left the mother's womb, immediately spreads its wings and begins to "fly" in circles around the adult female.

In captivity, sea devils are kept in only 5 large aquariums worldwide. The very good news is that, despite such a rare birth, they can be bred in captivity. In 2007, a sea devil was born in Japan. The birth of a baby was even shown on television, which emphasizes the love of a person for this truly beautiful animal. True, this love came belatedly, but people are rehabilitated before the sea devil.

Manta or giant sea devil is a species of stingrays of the eponymous genus of the bracken family of the caudal-shaped order, the superorder of stingrays. Members of the subfamily Mobulinae, to which manta rays belong, are the only vertebrates with three pairs of functioning limbs. This is the largest of the stingrays, the body width of individual individuals reaches 9.1 m (in the bulk 4-4.5 meters), and the mass of large specimens is up to 3 tons.

Translated from Spanish, the name of this fish is translated as "cloak" or "blanket". Indeed, a manta floating in the thickness of transparent water is very reminiscent of a kind of flying carpet, elegantly and majestically soaring in the sky.

Manta is one of the most known species stingrays. It owes its fame, first of all, to its huge size and amazing appearance, which caused the appearance of various legends, stories and tales about this amazing fish from the most ancient times.

The appearance and size of the manta is truly unique. Even a newborn "dummy" reaches more than 150 cm in fin span, and an adult can reach almost 8 m in wingspan and weigh more than 2 tons! This is a real sea giant.

In fairness, it should be said that the manta is not the champion among stingrays in terms of body length - the podium in this competition is occupied by sawfly stingrays, some species of which reach 7.6 m from the tip of the snout to the tip of the tail. The body of a manta does not grow longer than 2 meters. But due to the massiveness and breadth of the wingspan-fins, the manta, according to the unanimous opinion of biologists, is considered the largest stingray known to science.

The appearance of this fish does not allow confusing it with any other stingray or marine animal. Her body resembles a diamond-shaped carpet, black on top and pure white on the ventral side. Wide wings formed by pectoral fins, whip-shaped short tail, and characteristic horns on the head, formed by the anterior tips of the pectoral fins. With these horns, the stingray increases the flow of water into the cavity of its huge mouth. Why does manta need increased water circulation in the mouth? Yes, for the simple reason that these rays are planktivorous marine animals, like whales, cetaceans and giant sharks. Even the mouth of a manta ray resembles the mouth of a whale shark in shape, differing, however, in the structure of the dental apparatus.

The ability of sea devils to jump out of the water is well known. At the same time, they can rise 1.5 m above its surface. The sound of a large specimen falling onto the water is heard like thunder and can be heard for several miles. Manta is completely safe for humans, because it is not aggressive. However, touching her skin, covered with small spikes, is fraught with bruises and abrasions.

In the way for accumulations of plankton, stingrays can travel thousands of kilometers. Stingrays live in the warm waters of all oceans except the Arctic. More often they are found in the Indian Ocean, where they form whole flocks. Usually they hover in the water column, absorbing the plankton crop, often resting near the surface, exposing the tips of their pectoral fins to the surface.

Mantas swim by flapping their pectoral fins like wings. In the open sea, they move at a constant speed in a straight line, and near the coast they often bask on the surface of the water or circle lazily. They are found both singly and in groups of up to 30 individuals. They are often accompanied by other fish as well as seabirds.

Interestingly, manta rays are the most "brainy" fish in the oceans. The specific gravity of the manta brain (relative to body weight) is the largest fish known to science. It is possible that manta rays are the smartest fish on Earth.

The main danger for the manta is a person. The stingray meat is tasty and the liver is rich in fat. Therefore, in their habitats, handicraft fishermen and sports fishermen hunt manta rays. It is not easy to get a huge fish from the water, therefore it is prestigious. This leads to a drop in the number of manta rays, which causes concern among conservationists. In our time, work is underway on the artificial breeding of these animals in captivity. In 2007, a manta calf was born for the first time in the Okinawa Aquarium (Japan).

photo: filipmije (on and off)

The animal is not endowed with anything that could be used as a defense against marine predators. No huge teeth, no spikes, no ability to shock, as stingrays do. Manta rays are often preyed upon by other ocean dwellers. Especially large sharks like to hunt them. If in the middle of the last century people considered the Sea Devil dangerous to humans, now everyone knows that there is no need to be afraid of them.

photo: Tim

The main food of the Sea Devil is plankton, small fish and larvae. Just like whales, mantas open their mouths wide to swallow their small prey and then strain the water to leave the food in their mouths.
Mantas are very smart. Their brain size is larger than that of rays and sharks. They are easy to tame and are loved by divers. Some tourists specially go to rest on the coast of the Indian Ocean to swim side by side with the Sea Devil. These animals are very curious and, seeing something interesting on the surface of the water, they swim up to it to watch what is happening. Sometimes such excessive curiosity turns out to be fatal for this harmless creature.

photo: Saschj

One of the manta's favorite pastimes is jumping over water to a height of one and a half meters. The landing of a massive animal can be heard for many kilometers. The purpose of such games is not clear, but perhaps in this way the Sea Devil attracts the attention of the opposite sex or tries to stun the small fish that are included in his diet.
The appearance of cubs in Manta is a rare phenomenon. The female gives birth to only one baby. His height at birth is a whole meter! A small sea devil is born in the form of a folded tube, but, once outside the mother's womb, instantly spreads its wings. From that moment on, he begins to “fly” around his mother in circles.

photo: Steve Dunleavy

You can look at the Mantoux stingray in aquariums. But there are only five such places in the world, because the scope of the aquarium for such a massive marine animal should be rather big. It is remarkable that in captivity, mantas also breed, because this way they will not die out, given that they rarely give birth to their own kind. Breeding the Sea Devil in captivity is not easy and long, but it's worth it. One Sea Devil was born in an aquarium located in Japan. The event took place in 2007 and was covered on television. Man's love for this affectionate animal came with some delay, and now Manta is considered one of the most unique animals on the planet.