![]() Divers drop to the bottom and sit around the “fire” and wait for plankton & mantas. Our divemasters place a crate of dive lights on the sandy bottom that we refer to as the “campfire”. We arrive at the manta site just before sunset, and spend time briefing about the animals and the dive while enjoying sunset. Our manta ray night dive is one of the top rated dives in the world- a bucket list item for any SCUBA diver! There is so much ambient light in the water it's almost like diving during the day. The Manta Ray Advocates and the Manta Pacific Research Foundation are local nonprofits dedicated to the protection of these animals. While they are threatened in other parts of the world from overfishing and ocean pollution, they are revered here in Hawaii. ![]() Hawaiian lore says manta rays had the important task of catching the setting sun in their large mouths and swimming it to the other side of the island for sunrise. They are an aumakua, a Hawaiian family god, often a deified ancestor that has left earth and returned from the heavens in a different form. In Hawaii, manta rays are protected species, and it is illegal to hunt or fish for them. On good nights we’ll see 5+ rays, and sometimes it gets truly insane with 20-30 feeding mantas at the same dive site! The manta ray night dive has earned a reputation as the best night dive in the world- it’s truly phenomenal. They’ll come close -very close- and somersault over and over while feeding inches away from snorkelers and divers. Bright dive lights attract plankton in the water at night, and the swarming plankton makes an excellent free meal for these hungry rays. Part of the success of Kona’s famous night dive can be attributed to the unique relationship we’ve made with these animals over the last 40-50 years. Manta rays have a long lifespan, and are quite intelligent species that learn over time and have distinct personalities. Kona is home to a population of around 250 rays, identifiable by unique spot patterns on their bellies. You can see the gill rakers inside this open manta's mouth. ![]() We often see feeding rays somersault through especially plankton-rich water. Can you imagine having to survive by eating a diet of sprinkles? Mantas forage for zooplankton along the sunny surface during daytime. As filter feeders, mantas consume a massive amount of zooplankton in the form of shrimp, krill, and planktonic crabs (around 10-15% of their body weight each week). They don’t have stingers, barbs, or teeth- they are truly gentle giants. Though they are closely related to sharks and stingrays, manta rays are completely harmless. They are also known as ‘devilfish’ or ‘devil rays’ because of their horn-shaped cephalic fins- a colorful name from imaginative sailors with fear of the unknown. Their name comes from the Portuguese and Spanish word for “mantle”, a blanket-shaped trap used traditionally to catch these fish. alfredi is the species making regular appearances on our Manta Ray Night Dive. There are two primary species, Manta birostris and Manta alfredi, both of which are found in temperate subtropical and tropical waters. ![]() Manta rays are large cartilaginous fish, part of the same family as sharks and other rays (elasmobranchii, subclass of chondrichthyes or cartilaginous fish). If you look carefully you'll see a plankton snowstorm right above the dive lights. Female manta ray feeding over the 'campfire'- a milk crate full of dive lights.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |