Into the light || Manta snorkelling {Explore 135, 2019/08/18}
This is "Jolene Ray", first sighted and named in May 2017.
I love how the light from above shows through its gill slits as she was barrow rolling through the plankton.
Trivia... Mantas are known as "devilfish" because of their horn-shaped cephalic fins, which are imagined to give them an "evil" appearance
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Seeing Manta Rays at night off Kona was the main reason for us going to the Big Island. Mantas there are born there and feed up and down the coast. During the day, the sun heats the top of the water and plankton are attracted there. At night, the boats setup big lights on the ocean floor and snorkelers hold surfboards with lights shining down to form a column of light attracting plankton where the mantas then barrel roll to feed. They come seriously close to you ie cms away!
There are 3 spots on the Kona coast of the Big Island for Manta Rays at night: at the Sheraton hotel, Garden Eel Cove and Mauna Kea Beach. I dived 2 nights in a row at Garden Eel Cove and no sightings. They hadn't seen any for nearly a week for some reason. A double dive so one at sunset and then another at night for the Mantas or on the reef if no Mantas. The Sheraton sounds like a bit of a zoo.... many boats as sightings are more constant there. Somewhat unsafe for divers as there is limited space to rest on sand and so the coral can be damaged and insufficient moorings means that some boats are drifting plus a ton of snorkelers.
The 3rd option is further north and harder to get to. Much shallower so no real point diving there (<10m deep). Only 2 boats there and we had 3 mantas join the party!!
Into the light || Manta snorkelling {Explore 135, 2019/08/18}
This is "Jolene Ray", first sighted and named in May 2017.
I love how the light from above shows through its gill slits as she was barrow rolling through the plankton.
Trivia... Mantas are known as "devilfish" because of their horn-shaped cephalic fins, which are imagined to give them an "evil" appearance
****
Seeing Manta Rays at night off Kona was the main reason for us going to the Big Island. Mantas there are born there and feed up and down the coast. During the day, the sun heats the top of the water and plankton are attracted there. At night, the boats setup big lights on the ocean floor and snorkelers hold surfboards with lights shining down to form a column of light attracting plankton where the mantas then barrel roll to feed. They come seriously close to you ie cms away!
There are 3 spots on the Kona coast of the Big Island for Manta Rays at night: at the Sheraton hotel, Garden Eel Cove and Mauna Kea Beach. I dived 2 nights in a row at Garden Eel Cove and no sightings. They hadn't seen any for nearly a week for some reason. A double dive so one at sunset and then another at night for the Mantas or on the reef if no Mantas. The Sheraton sounds like a bit of a zoo.... many boats as sightings are more constant there. Somewhat unsafe for divers as there is limited space to rest on sand and so the coral can be damaged and insufficient moorings means that some boats are drifting plus a ton of snorkelers.
The 3rd option is further north and harder to get to. Much shallower so no real point diving there (<10m deep). Only 2 boats there and we had 3 mantas join the party!!