Friendly Fins to discover the coastal manta
- Friendly Fins
- Dec 18, 2024
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 7
Preparation for snorkeling or diving Friendly Fins:
The manta is an extraordinary animal, totally harmless and innocent! We will have the opportunity to see it easily by snorkeling and diving in tropical seas, following their migrations. With some precautions we can make this experience unique.
Snorkeling:
Wearing a wetsuit not so much to protect yourself from the cold (which after a while we could feel) but above all from the sun! The pleasantness of the warm Maldivian waters makes you forget that half of our body is exposed to the sun and that added to the reflection of the water can make us become perfect shrimps!
It is best to always apply sunscreen with SPF 50 or SPF 30 at least half an hour before entering the water to give it time to absorb, otherwise it will be completely useless and also harmful to the environment.
"Arm yourself" with a mask, fins, snorkel and possibly a life jacket if you don't feel too safe in deep water.
Camera or video camera in case we want to immortalize this moment.
For diving:
All diving equipment with advance check of all its functioning.
Be properly balanced with ballast: currents in the Maldives are the order of the day and with a “good weighting” we will not be dragged away or stuck to the delicate seabed.
Often manta rays stay in certain places and it will be very easy to observe them by staying still in place. It will therefore be VERY useful to have a good trim, that is, to stay at the set depth without struggling or struggling. The air that we freely consume on the surface, becomes very precious underwater, the less we move the more time we have to watch the manta rays!
Where we look for manta rays
In the ocean reefs and surface: manta rays are animals that feed on plankton and in these areas it accumulates more easily. It will be easy to see them with their mouths open while they swim slowly, filtering the food with their large gills.
Cleaning Station: They are regular visitors to cleaning stations, which are very large and complex coral groups, rich in fish, especially cleaner fish, great allies of the health of marine animals. Cleaning stations can host numerous manta rays that remain there for a long time. Nothing easier to observe them! Depending on their depth, they can be seen by both snorkelers and scuba divers.
At night: how is it possible? This fantastic activity is mainly carried out by underwater cruise boats that place a large light at the stern of the boat that will illuminate the adjacent body of water. The illuminated part of the sea will quickly attract very small platonic organisms, accumulating in large quantities. However, we said that the manta ray eats plankton and so with a little patience it will also arrive twirling like a ballerina and having a super gorge! This extraordinary experience allows EVERYONE to observe it: from the boat, snorkeling and obviously diving. The underwater torches and their beam of light will attract the plankton even more and the manta ray will come very close to us. This activity makes them even more fascinating: seeing them twirling in the dark illuminated only by a few beams of light... Simply superlative...
In the sea, anything is possible: Manta rays can travel considerable distances, so there is no reason why we cannot meet them while they swim peacefully in the middle of the sea!
How we approach the manta
When searching for manta rays, it is essential to always look in every direction: down, right, left, in front and especially behind! (Maybe we have been looking for them for half an hour and they are swimming happily behind us!)
Once you spot them, it is essential not to get agitated or swim at full speed towards them, otherwise they will run away!
Let's try to approach them delicately, they are not afraid of us and will let us get close easily if we are not too presumptuous!
We do not interfere with their business: during the cleaning in the cleaning stations they remain on these large coral mushrooms, if we position ourselves there too, they will feel annoyed and will go away or will not even come. It is therefore essential to remain towards the base of these "mushrooms" and wait patiently.
Let’s not damage the surrounding environment when we admire the manta ray circling above us or while we photograph it. We remind you that in addition to causing damage we risk unpleasant accidents with animals camouflaged on the bottom, sometimes poisonous. So let’s always pay attention!
LET'S NOT TOUCH THEM because we put them in serious danger: the skin of marine animals has a protective coating, if we caress them we risk removing it or thinning it, allowing fungi, algae and parasites to attach themselves causing serious problems and diseases.
Let us carefully observe their deep eyes, we will find great serenity and well-being.
We Friendly Fins can do something to help get to know these extraordinary animals
Photoidentification
Each manta has a unique belly: the spots on it are “their fingerprint”! This makes it very easy to identify them thanks to a simple photograph that, once sent to researchers, will investigate who it is, its growth, health and its movements over time.
Manta rays are sedentary migrants, so they return to the same Maldivian atolls every year. “Photographic help” from tourists allows us to learn a lot about individuals and populations, protecting them in a more targeted and effective way.
As a reward for our photos, we will receive a response with the name and description of the manta we encountered… An example:
“Ken (MV-MA-2338) is an adult male, first identified in May 2012 in Fesdu Lagoon, Ari Atoll. This beautiful specimen has been located approximately 20 times and is a regular night visitor to Fesdu Lagoon. Ken was last seen on September 24, 2017, wallowing in a large mass of plankton! He is a very peaceful and calm individual. I am sure he loves having his belly photographed by us humans.”
We can all contribute to research by sending our belly photos to the Manta Trust website at https://www.mantatrust.org/idthemanta
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