Flying mantas!

[Purpleturtle]

Now I want honesty here....has anyone ever seen a manta ray breach??? Firsthand...not," I knew a guy once...."

I've read many, many descriptions of mantas breaking the surface a "gliding", but never seen photos or video footage.

Should this be put down to urban myth/seafaring yarn?

Anyone?

[divetiger]

I did when I was a teenager. Dad took me out to an island beach around Clearwater, and there was a girl sailboarding about 100 yards away heading away from us. All of the sudden a manta breached behind her and then disappeared. She never saw it cause I'm sure she would have been spooked.

Obviously quite a site to see because I've never forgotten it. It's wingspan was almost as wide as the board she was on.

[Sarah]

[Purpleturtle]

MMMmmm that vid looks more like eagle rays to me. Maybe I was just trying to picture a 4 metre wingspan manta gliding above the water like an albatross.

What with the BBC getting ultra-slow-motion shots of great whites and humpbacks breaching, I just thought the blue planet team might have filmed flying mantas too.

[Sarah]

Yes, it sure doesn't look like mantas to me either.......but then again I've never seen baby mantas.....

[onebourbon]

I saw a manta backflip in front of the boat on the way back from a dive site at Byron Bay. Only myself and the skipper saw it... but it was an amazing site... and at least I have a witness.

Don

[PinayDiver]

I saw a manta breach while relaxing on the boat in between diving Manta Bowl in Ticao, Masbate (Philippines). I also saw a fisherman race towards the spot in a failed attempt to harpoon it. Imagine my range of emotion from awe to anger.

[Diver Dennis]

We see Manta breach often in Puerto Vallarta. No urban myth but exactly why is unknown. Some say it is to clean sea lice off their backs.

[Delta_v18]

Me and my guests have seen one on January 12, 2008, 1530H that breached twice just a little offshore in a beach area, north of Calumbuyan Island, Busuanga, Northern Palawan, Philippines. Size was around 2'-3'. Sadly, some people here in this part of the world indiscriminately hunt and sell its meat in one of the local markets. It took time (and lots of shouts hurled at us) here to convince those vendors that the species is on the CITES listing and should be protected..