![]() ![]() Half-way through our dive, the queen (or king – I am still fuzzy on the manta’s gender…) came over and made the other mantas look like dwarfs. Manta dinner tonight? But no, plankton is what they like and want, not neoprene-clad bubble-creating mask-protected weird creatures. That had me hold my breath for a second! Was I going to be Ms. ![]() Close Manta EncounterĪs I turned my head after following one of the mantas, I came face to face – literally – with a full open mouth, big enough to swallow my head and my whole body in one second. You could see them coming back over and over to the plankton over the lights, speeding up as they were nearing the feast. ![]() The mantas consume up to 13% of their body per week, filtering the food by the tissue between their gills. Manta rays eat an enormous volume of zooplankton (shrimps, planktonic crabs). The three mantas were flying around, like an orchestrated show, white bellies and black wings swirling around under a silent tune. The first time I felt the push was startling, but I then was looking forward to the encounter. Their presence was somewhat majestic as they were coming very close to us, so close we could feel the soft touch of their wings on our arms or heads as they were swerving and turning around us. Soon a second, and a third manta ray came in, joining the graceful ballet the gentle monsters were performing in front of us. I was trying to calm down my nervousness, slowing down my elaborated breathing but it took me a few seconds to do so. Our first sighting of a Manta Ray! Big, immense, HUGE! I was not expecting manta rays to be that big and it was quite impressive to see. Shortly after the lights were set, a shade darker than the dark sea was sliding towards up, unwavering in our direction. Bruno made an unfriendly encounter with a sea urchin and was trying to find a way to stabilize without hitting more urchins. We were limiting our hand-anchoring by just grabbing the corals with two fingers, but boy, the surge was indeed powerful. Our divemaster told us to do so at that location as the coral was already in bad shape due to regular boat mooring and because of the powerful surge in the area that might roll us like a dishwasher. Light during the night will attract plankton, which in turns draws the manta rays. Manta Swimming Over Bruno Hawaii Big Island: Manta Ray Night Dive ExperienceĪs we reached our destination, our divemaster signaled us to stay put as he was setting up the different dive lamps. Underwater photography, especially at night, can be tricky. We were so glad to catch these giant manta rays on our GoPro. For the next 40 minutes, feel the thrill of the Manta Ray Night Dive, Kona, and why this is a one of the must-do Big Island of Hawaii things to do.Īnd indeed a big island Hawaii manta night dive is a once-in-a-lifetime experience! A full open mouth headed to your head as you would be the next meal. A tip of wing flaps gently over your shoulder. The manta rays have arrived!Īs they swim around feed off the plankton, they swirl around you. All the sudden, massive white wings dance their way towards the light slowly too. Slowly plankton invades the area, drawn by the light. Picture yourself as you enter the black water, ready to meet the giant mantas! Gently resting and waiting on the – unfortunately – dead coral, the underwater dive lamps light up the dark environment. The thrill of diving with manta rays is accentuated by the excitation of the night dive. ![]()
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