Unexpected Encounters
August 2019
For the majority of our projects and affiliate groups, the main focus of our research is manta rays….although I’m guessing you’ve figured that one out already! However, the ocean is always full of mystery and loves to throw the odd curve ball.
The team at Manta Caribbean Project were heading home from a day out surveying for Atlantic manta rays when they came across a couple of sailfish hunting! When I saw the photos, it reminded me of a strange encounter with a completely unexpected marine animal that I had (read on to find out what it was). After seeing that, I sent an email round to all our affiliate project leaders to find out if anyone else has had an unexpected encounter whilst out in the field. Check them out below!
SAILFISH IN MEXICO
Annie Murray - Manta Caribbean Project Manager
It had been a long and manta-less day for us in the Mexico Caribbean Biosphere Reserve. With such an enormous research area, there are some frustrating days when we simply cannot find any mantas to study. Along with my colleague Karen Fuentes and our team of volunteers, I was feeling a little disappointed as we turned the boat and began heading back towards Isla Mujures to call it a day. However, on this occasion, Mother Nature had a little surprise up her sleeve to thoroughly cheer us all up. As we sped over turquoise waters, the eagle-eyed captain spotted a couple of strange looking spiky fins circling in the water and slowed our vessel to investigate. We discovered a trio of sailfish circling together. After a quick and clumsy dash for our fins, masks, snorkels and cameras, then a few careful plops as we each tried to enter the water as quietly as possible, we were off!
Spotting sailfish like this is an incredibly lucky occurrence. Here in the Mexico Caribbean, tourists pay a lot of money to go out on day-long excursions hoping to share the water with these fancy fish. Trips usually consist of many hours searching, far from the mainland, in rough, seasickness-inducing waters, before a few minutes in the water with the animals IF the tourists are lucky. We, on the other hand, had stumbled across a once in a lifetime encounter by accident and were well aware of just how fortunate this was!
Sailfish are famed for their speed. They are one of the fastest, if not the fastest, fish in the ocean; reaching speeds of up to 68mph! Luckily for us they were not swimming anywhere near as fast as this when we found them, but it was still a great workout trying to keep up and stay close enough to capture a few moments on film. It’s not hard to see why people are so keen to see sailfish; their colouring is beautiful, their shape both bizarre and elegant and their movements effortlessly graceful.
Sailfish often work together like this in groups of two or more, using their huge dorsal fins to create a fence around schools of smaller fish such as sardines and anchovies, then thrashing at and disrupting their prey, allowing each sailfish in the group to easily snatch its dinner. Their spear-like bill also comes in handy for slashing at larger prey fish, stunning them into submission.
After a few short minutes the sailfish disappeared into the blue, leaving us bobbing on the surface in awe and shock at what we’d just witnessed. That’s what we love about working on the ocean - no two days are the same! You never know what you are going to encounter or learn. It’s always good advice to keep your mask and fins in grabbing distance!
HUMPBACKS IN BAA
Guy Stevens - CEO & Co-Founder
Every year, often in the months of August and September, a few humpback whales are sighted in Baa Atoll. The sightings are usually brief, as the whales pass through the Maldives archipelago on their migration. Over the years, I have managed to capture several fluke ID shots, including one of the three sub-adult male humpbacks pictured here just north of the Four Seasons at Landaa Giraavaru in 2008. To date, none of these identified whales have been matched to any of the databases for this species maintained in the Indian and Southern Oceans. As a result, we have no idea for sure where these giant visitors are coming from, or going to. Nonetheless, being able to spend a few minutes swimming with these beautiful creatures was an experience I will never forget.
MOLA MOLA IN FUVAHMULAH
Simon Hilbourne - Media & Communications Manager
In 2018, I was leading a Manta Expeditions trip in the deep south of the Maldives in search of oceanic mantas. As it turns out, we were a week or two too early for the main season. In Fuvahmulah atoll (the hotspot for oceanic mantas) we did see one oceanic manta. A huge dark shadow coming out of the deep but as soon as the white shoulder pads became visible, it was clear it was an oceanic manta! We were so happy! Just 5 minutes later the same thing happened. I was towards the back of the group and heard banging and saw pointing, but this time it wasn’t an oceanic manta as I thought! From a distance, in poor visibility, I think a mola mola could be mistaken for a manta swimming on it’s side, right?!
It turns out sunfish can be IDed using photo IDs of their sides so I submitted some images to Ocean Sunfish Research and it was their first submission from the Maldives!
WHALE SHARK IN BRAZIL
Gui Kodja - Brazilian Marine Megafauna Project
It was Easter Sunday in 2012, and having had a call about an oceanic manta in the area the day before, the team headed out with satellite tags in hand. It was a beautiful calm, sunny day, with dolphins bow riding with us on the way out to our site.
Despite a nice long dive, no manta turned up. Just as we were on our safety stop though, she appeared a few meters underneath me! I froze myself... What!!! A Whale Shark here?!?!?! No way.
I named her GAIA and she was submitted to Ecocean. An incredibly rare sighting and certainly the largest one recorded in Brazil!
As far as field days go, this was one of the best ‘no manta days’!!
(Whale shark appears at 2.08)
THE MANTA TEAM