Marine life profile
Mobula
Recorded at 6 dive sitesWhere divers encounter it
Explore Mobula around the world
It appears to fly underwater, cruising over sand or reef before settling where camouflage makes it easy to miss.
Meet the species
What to look for
How to Recognize It
Look for a flattened body with wing-like fins, eyes on top and a long tail trailing behind.
How It Behaves
It appears to fly underwater, cruising over sand or reef before settling where camouflage makes it easy to miss.
Special Ability
Its broad fins turn slow-looking movements into remarkably efficient underwater flight.
Dive responsibly
Share the water well
How to Approach
Approach from the side, remain above the bottom and leave a clear path ahead. Never corner or follow closely.
Safety
Do not touch, stand on or crowd a resting ray. Give the tail room and shuffle carefully in shallow sandy water.
Worth knowing
The detail you remember
Interesting Facts
Mobula is closely adapted to its habitat, and patient observation reveals details that a quick swim-by misses.
Where to Find
Search sandy flats, cleaning stations, reef passes and current-swept channels, especially around feeding or cleaning time.
Known countries
Sightings map
Mobula locations
Plan a dive
Dive sites with reported encounters
Johnny's Gorge
India
Johnny's Gorge is a bed of low-lying rocky outcrops emerging from the bottom at 26metres / 85 feet. Surrounded by sand in every direction, these rocks have become an oasis of security and food for everything from small angelfish and anemonefish to spectacular schools of mackerels, barracudas, trevallies, bumphead parrotfish, surgeonfish, and snappers. And if this isn't enough, this world-class dive site is also home to reef sharks, giant groupers, large stingrays, and visiting manta and eagle rays. There is very rarely a quiet moment at Johnny's Gorge.
Rasdhoo Beyru Kandu
Maldives
The divesite is located in the north outside of the atoll. It is a vertical wall that continues in a reef slope at 25+ m. With some current a nice drift dive can be done. This dive is a good alternative should there be no manta at the cleaning station.
Roca Montana
Mexico
Very extended reef with beautiful hard coral formation. Pinnacles and canyons. Rich in marine life. Moderate current conditions and not deep parts. Moderate gradient
Land's End
Mexico
Probably the most famous dive site in Cabo and home to our resident colony of curious California Sea Lions. The site offers multiple dive options including visiting the sea lion colony, a small underwater cavern, wall dives along its multiple pinnacles, and even the remnants of a shipwreck. Keep your eyes open because all sorts of amazing rare encounters can be had here; schools of Mobula rays, massive bait balls of sardines, huge schools of snapper, even humpback whales have been spotted on dives here before.
Neptune's Finger
Mexico
Neptune's Finger gets its name from a large finger shaped pinnacle that breaks the waters surface rising to about 8 meters above the water. Underwater it offers a few beautiful shallow pinnacles with different types of corals. The shallows are one of the best spots in Cabo for macro, especially nudibranchs. Out on the wall you have Cabo's other famous sand falls as well as large schools of snapper, a butterfly fish cleaning station, visiting turtles, and much more! Make sure to keep an eye out above during the Mobula and cow nose ray seasons too - the schools are known to pass by overhead as they transit around the bay. The walls here extend down more than 200+ meters (600+ ft), making it a great spot for technical diving, plus the pinnacles running all the way up to the surfaces means you have some awesome critters to keep you occupied on deco stops.
Paradise
Costa Rica
Excellent place to see the reef shark. Also big schools of barracudas, blue stripped Snappers and grunts. It is occasional school of mobula rays slipping here us around in very large groups of between 50 and 60 copies. On the main rocks of paradise we can see groups of more than 20 white tip sharks resting under rock overhangs.