(TAN): The Manta Trust team at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru is preparing to have guests swim with the world’s largest-known manta ray population, the Four Seasons said in a news release.
During 2022’s manta ray season, The Manta Trust — whose researchers have run The Maldivian Manta Ray Project (MMRP) at Landaa Giraavaru since 2005 — estimated 6,083 manta ray sightings in the waters around the resort.
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At nearby Hanifaru Bay, famed for its mass manta aggregations, an estimated 5,016 sightings were made. Across the archipelago, 176 manta rays were identified for the first time, bringing the total known Maldives reef manta ray population to 5,507 — the largest recorded in the world.
During June 2022, Landaa Giraavaru’s researchers (and guests) encountered more than 60 manta rays on the resort’s house reef. For the first time ever, the mantas were observed engaging in cyclone feeding — a rotating feeding circle resembling a cyclone – within a stone’s throw of the Resort’s Arrival Jetty.
With wingspans of up to 4.5 metres (15 feet), the largest brain-to-size ratio of any cold-blooded fish, and a cognitive function on a par with dolphins, primates and elephants, reef mantas are some of the most impressive creatures in the ocean.
At Four Seasons Landaa Giraavaru: 2022’s manta season also saw a record 27 whale shark sightings in local waters.
