As such, you can show your support for this people and their symbol by getting a Zia sun symbol tattoo. Both of the two species of Manta Ray are considered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as "vulnerable", due to a mixture of pollution in their native tropical waters, accidental capture in fishing nets, and even unregulated fishing in a few remaining countries.The Zia people of New Mexico are an indigenous tribe that regard the sun as a sacred symbol. If only the same could be said by return. When divers encounter them in the open ocean, they either ignore the humans completely or even show signs of friendly curiosity. Even though they are known to hunt, Mantas are definitely gentle giants as far as people are concerned. Mantas appear to visit "cleaning stations", where cleaner wrasse or other small animals remove parasites they are unable to get to themselves. Marine animals can be prone to parasites, and filter feeders especially need to look after their gills. Although they are sometimes seen alone, Manta Rays can also travel in groups of 50 or more, and even sometimes seem to voluntarily associate with other marine animals including whales and dolphins. The former can take approximately ten years to reach sexual maturity. However, there are also some tell-tale signs in the body shapes and coloring etc., which can help you spot the differences, even when comparing Manta Ray Vs Stingray pictures without anything of obvious size shown for scale. In adult specimens, the most obvious difference between stingray and manta ray species is their size.
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How to Tell The Difference Between Manta Rays and Stingrays Stingrays also use the barbed stinger on their tails to stun their prey before they eat it. Most Stingrays are predatory carnivores right from birth, eating a similar diet to their parents.īecause they are primarily bottom feeders, a Stingray's mouth is located on the underside of its head to help them eat prey buried in the sand. They primarily prey on shellfish, crabs, and small fish, although they do also sometimes eat a range of other marine animals including squid and octopus. Unlike Manta Rays, Stingrays feed entirely by hunting around the ocean floor. Some researchers have even suggested that these supposedly gentle giants are, in fact, primarily macropredators, perhaps gaining over 70% of their overall nutrition this way. A Manta Ray's mouth does have teeth and they are capable of swallowing significantly sized fish, given the size of that mouth. However, despite having been generally considered as filter feeders, Giant Oceanic Manta Rays have also been observed in deeper water opportunistically hunting smaller fish. These gill rakers help filter feeders to sift small prey from the water without the gills themselves becoming clogged up. Let's take a closer look at the difference between Stingray and Manta Ray species. This is most definitely not the case, however. Manta's and stingrays share some other basic features, including similar tail-like appendages, which lead some people to assume they are the same animal. Unlike most fish, these species have skeletons made of flexible cartilage instead of bones. Here I'll explain how to correctly distinguish between Manta Rays and their closest Stingray cousins, in addition to providing a host of facts about both of these fascinating animals.īoth Manta Rays and Stingrays are members of the same family of cartilaginous fish, which also contains all of the sharks. As with any wild animals, it's important to be able to identify fish species correctly, especially since some can be dangerous.
But, what's the difference between stingrays and manta rays? Are they even really different species?Ī lot of people get confused between Manta Rays and Stingrays, either believing them to be different names for the same species or losing track of which is which. Manta Rays and Stingrays belong to a fascinating family of sea creatures.
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