Southern California’s increasingly tropical-looking ocean has delivered another stunner.
A giant oceanic manta ray — the largest ray species on Earth — was filmed off San Diego by Net Zero Expeditions, an encounter the company says may represent the first documented sighting of the species in local waters. The species can grow 29 feet across, an enormous wingspan even for a animal known for reaching extraordinary size.
The group published footage under the title “Endangered Oceanic Manta Filmed Off San Diego.” Check out the video below.
The footage shows the manta gliding through blue water, its wing-like pectoral fins dwarfing the fish around it. Unlike stingrays, oceanic mantas are gentle filter feeders, consuming huge quantities of zooplankton.
NOAA lists Mobula birostris as threatened under the Endangered Species Act and identifies it as the world’s largest ray.
Manolo Mendieta, founder of Net Zero Expeditions, said:
“When an endangered oceanic manta shows up off San Diego, the ocean is telling us something. A year-long marine heat wave has already pushed tropical waters farther north than most of us have ever seen, and a strong El Niño is still building in the tropical Pacific. El Niño is a natural cycle, and its biggest effects here are still ahead.
“Heat waves like this one are becoming more common as the ocean warms, and the systems that sustain marine life are under real pressure. We built Net Zero Expeditions so that every trip doubles as a scientific survey. The people on the water every week see these changes first, and we have a responsibility to make sure what we see doesn’t go unrecorded.”
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Its appearance off San Diego also fits a pattern surfers and fishermen have been watching all summer.
El Niño conditions are now present and strengthening, while Southern California remains affected by a pre-existing marine heatwave. NOAA says warmer-than-normal water is expected along the West Coast and notes that warm conditions can push species into areas normally too cold for them.
Earlier this month, rare spinetail devil rays were spotted near San Diego’s Nine Mile Bank, joining a growing list of warm-water visitors.
“In the near future, we may expect to see an increase in tropical or warm subtropical species,” Nate Jaros, vice president of animal care for fish and invertebrates at the Aquarium of the Pacific, recently told the Los Angeles Times.
Net Zero Expeditions called the manta encounter potentially historic, noting that the species is far more commonly associated with warmer waters to the south.
And with El Niño still strengthening, this may not be Southern California’s last tropical surprise.
NOAA notes that giant mantas are highly migratory and their movements can track seawater temperature, currents and shifting concentrations of zooplankton.
In other words: keep watching the water.
Related: Rare Spinetail Devil Rays Cruise Off San Diego As Pacific Boils (Video)
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