While they’re much smaller in comparison, the reef manta ray is only a few hundred pounds lighter than their close cousin the giant oceanic manta ray. These rays tend to have a width of 9.8 to 11.5 feet, though they’ve been recorded with a width of up to 18 feet – that’s the same height as a giraffe! The reef manta ray, however, is much smaller, though it’s still one of the largest fish you’ll find in the ocean. While that’s only a fraction of some of the other largest critters under the sea, it’s still around the same size as a car! Reef Manta Ray Size They have a “wingspan” or disc width of up to 30 feet! That’s around the same size as your typical Routemaster Double-Decker bus, and only a few feet smaller than a telephone pole! If you were to compare their wingspan to some of the largest birds of prey, it would also take nearly four bald eagles side by side with their wings expanded to equal the same width as the giant manta ray!Ī typical adult giant ray can reach weights of up to 3,600 pounds. The giant manta ray is the larger of the two species. In fact, the only thing that creates a distinction of three tiny differences: their coloration, their habitat, and, you guessed it, their size. While scientists used to believe there were only one species of manta ray, they’ve now discovered that there are two: the giant manta ray and the reef manta ray.Īt a first glance, it may not seem like these two sea creatures have too many differences. After all, could you imagine riding on the back of a stingray? Probably not, but after reading this, you may just see yourself swimming through the ocean on the back of these gentle giants of the deep! Manta Ray Size Manta rays get the nickname “devil fish” for their two large horns. While related to the manta ray, their size doesn’t even come close to their large ocean cousins. If you live by the coast or have visited an aquarium, you may be familiar with stingrays. However, do you know just how big these devil fish really are? When you see this manta ray size comparison, it might just surprise you. Journal reference: Journal of Ethology, DOI: 10.The 15 Deepest Lakes in the United… Manta rays are one of the biggest cold-blooded fish!Īs the largest ray and one of the largest fish in the sea, it’s no surprise that the manta ray is big. “It would be nice if someone could do neuroimaging while these animals are doing something in response to seeing a reflection,” he says. He thinks it is time to raise the bar on the way we study self-awareness in animals, including manta rays. Such species may fail the mirror test, but they may still be self-aware, Bekoff says. It is a visual measure, so it might not work in species that navigate their worlds primarily using senses other than vision. This implies that self-awareness may be limited to humans and some great apes.īut Bekoff says that the mirror test may not be the litmus test for self-awareness in all animals. “Humans, chimpanzees and orangutans are the only species for which there is compelling, reproducible evidence for mirror self-recognition,” he says. But Gallup says these were usually conducted on just one or two animals and the results were not reproducible. Other studies have suggested that dolphins, elephants, monkeys and magpies, and even a robot, can recognise themselves in the mirror. The unusual movements in front of the mirror might have merely been a sign of curiosity or exploratory behaviour, he says. Gallup Jr, of the University at Albany, New York, who originally developed the mirror test, is also sceptical. But she says it is unclear whether the rays actually recognise themselves in the mirror. “The behavioural responses strongly imply the ability for self-awareness, especially considering that similar, or analogous, behavioural responses are considered proof of self-awareness in great apes,” Ari says.ĭiana Reiss, of Hunter College in New York, says that it is interesting that manta rays did not show social behaviour towards the mirror image, as fish usually do. The rays also blew bubbles in front of the mirror, behaviour that Ari had not observed in the rays before.
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