Martina Ray was identified on October 1, 2004 about 2 miles off-shore the Kona Coast by James Wing.
On that day Martina Ray was being pursuit by a male manta that we call “St. James Ray“. Martina Ray is a pelagic manta ray. We have seen her only once, but because she roams the big ocean one day she might be spotted in a different part of the world, so keep an eye or two out for her.
Martina Ray’s namesake is Martina Wing, creator of this website.
Martina Ray being chased by St. James Ray - these pelagic mantas have been named after James and Martina Wing
Martina Ray
Martina Ray
Martina Ray
Martina Ray
Martina Ray
Martina Ray
Martina Ray
Martina Ray
WINGSPAN 8-10 feet
GENDER Male
SPECIES Mobula Alfredi (reef)
WINGSPAN 6-8 feet
GENDER Male
SPECIES Mobula Alfredi (reef)
WINGSPAN 9-10 feet
GENDER Male
SPECIES Mobula Alfredi (reef)
WINGSPAN 6-8 Feet
GENDER Female
SPECIES Mobula Alfredi (reef)
WINGSPAN 12-14 feet
GENDER Female
SPECIES Mobula Alfredi (reef)
WINGSPAN 7-9 feet
GENDER Female
SPECIES Mobula Alfredi (reef)
WINGSPAN 12-14 feet
GENDER Female
SPECIES Mobula Alfredi (reef)
WINGSPAN 9-10 feet
GENDER Male
SPECIES Mobula Alfredi (reef)
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Hi! We leave the big island today and our favorite thing was Manta Ray night snorkeling. I’ve been looking on websites, and at the video here at the Outrigger to try to identify which manta ray we saw the most of. But all I can remember are the dots down right by the tail and a lot of the pictures/videos don’t show that part. I think she was a female, and she had four vertical dots on her right side of the female parts and three vertical dots on her left side, but one was larger. It looked like two dots that merged into one. Can you tell me which Manta this was? I loved the video I just saw by Martina Wing about the pregnancy process. I have two other questions. Our guide told us that Manta Rays jump out of the water when giving birth, and the baby comes out when they are airborne. Is that true? Also, I just saw on your video that the eyes are on the belly. To me it looked like the eyes were on the side of their heads (what I thought was her head but it’s probably just the mouth). What are those things? Thansk’
Hi Andrea, thank you for your interest and love for the manta rays! If you would like to send us a video or pictures/screenshots you took to info@mantarayshawaii.com, we take a look and hopefully determine the name of the manta you saw. It’s one of my favorite things to do 🙂
Question 1: I cannot confirm the story about the manta ray giving birth in the air. We only know of two births ever recorded and they took place under water. Check out this post for more info: https://mantarayadvocates.com/how-do-manta-rays-reproduce/
Question 2: The mantas’ eyes are on the side. You might be thinking of a stingray, and those are not eyes but nostrils. Check out this post for more info: https://mantarayadvocates.com/stingrays-manta-rays-smile/