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mdcaton
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What months devil rays most active?
Hi everyone, I've never seen devil rays in the wild and would like to go out on the Gulf of California when I have the best chance of seeing them.
Any particular time of year? Thanks in advance.
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DENNIS
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What's a Devil Ray? I thought they were a hockey team.
Mantas...maybe?
ooooops....Welcome to BajaNomad. Someone will be along shortly to fill you in.
[Edited on 12-30-2011 by DENNIS]
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Ken Bondy
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If you are referring to the rays that often launch themselves from the surface those are called mobulas.
carpe diem!
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Islandbuilder
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Ha! Good you got to meet Dennis first!
I think others will have better info than I do, but the more correct common name is, as Dennis said, Manta Ray.
A google search with the words Manta Ray and Sea of Cortez (the other, again, more common name) should give some information.
Also try a YouTube search.
Good luck, and welcome!
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Ken Bondy
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mdcaton it would be helpful to know which ray you are looking for. Both the large Pacific manta ray (Manta birostris) and the smaller mobula (family
Myliobatidae) have been colloquially referred to as "devil rays". Manta rays are rarely seen in the Sea of Cortez now, having been mostly killed by
fishermen. They can reliably be seen at the Revillagigedos Islands, about 250 miles south of Cabo San Lucas, but sightings in the SOC are unusual.
Mobulas, on the other hand, are still relatively plentiful in the SOC. They are the rays that commonly breach and launch themselves out of the water,
which is a spectacular sight. In my experience mobulas are most often seen in the summer months.
This is a mobula:

This is a manta:
carpe diem!
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Gaucho
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Great shots Ken! Were those taken in the SOC?
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acadist
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You know it's gonna be a good day when the water is like glass and you see those rays jumping!!!
Dave
I moved to CO and they made me buy a little rod to make it feel like a real fish
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Ken Bondy
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Thanks gaucho. The manta was taken at Isla San Benedicto in the Mexican Revillagigedos, the mobula at Cocos Island, Costa Rica.
carpe diem!
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Islandbuilder
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Wow Ken, thank you for the great pics and the clarification.
So, it's the mobula we see jumping off of Cabo. And Mantas aren't as likely to be present, or to jump, right?
Do you know what the market was for the Mantas?
Thanks.
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Ken Bondy
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Islandbuilder
Yes, the jumpers are all mobulas. To the best of my knowledge mantas do not jump. I have never seen a manta leave the water (on its own), and have
never heard of such a documented report. At the southern SOC sites where mantas used to be regularly seen (El Bajo, Las Animas, Cerralvo...) they are
very rare now. To my knowledge the market for mantas was similar to other rays that have been slaughtered to make fake scallops (called "sea
scallops" in US restaurants) using "cookie-cutter" devices to gouge out the meat from the wings. The big, docile mantas were easy targets and were
readily speared when they were near the surface.
carpe diem!
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Islandbuilder
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Thanks Ken. Yep, I've seen the plug cutter approach before, but it was a LONG time ago when I was in the Sea Food business in Santa Barbara.
There is also a sad part of our species that just plain likes to kill stuff bigger than us. For food, OK, but to kill for nothing other than to prove
some point is pathetic.
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DENNIS
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Quote: | Originally posted by Ken Bondy
Islandbuilder
To my knowledge the market for mantas was similar to other rays that have been slaughtered to make fake scallops (called "sea scallops" in US
restaurants) using "cookie-cutter" devices to gouge out the meat from the wings. The big, docile mantas were easy targets and were readily speared
when they were near the surface. |
Even today, Ken, Manta Raya is commonly sold at the large grocery stores, Comercial Mexicana and others, not as scallops but in sheets or slabs of
meat.
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Ken Bondy
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Thanks DENNIS, sad to hear that.
carpe diem!
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captkw
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jumber's
I belive the local's (me) usally call them monteray's or monterey's.. they are not referd to as diablo's(devil"s) or not that,, I have ever
heard,,and the cookee cutter,, thing,I have not tryed myself,but used hear ,it all the time,me, I like real scollop's and the best time,,,hhmm, ya
got me one that one,,I can say, that just few ago,I saw a hell of an lot more of them and one of the cooler display's of the del mar..K&T
[Edited on 12-31-2011 by captkw]
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DENNIS
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Quote: | Originally posted by Ken Bondy
Thanks DENNIS, sad to hear that. |
More sadness.....I may have mentioned this to you a little while back, but remember the round, thatch roofed restaurant between Ensenada and
Maneadero....well, they bulldozed it. Don't know what their plans are, but they don't include the restaurant.
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KaceyJ
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To answer your question based on my observations most simply
August and September,
IMEx, , the warmer the water , the more active
Good populations exist South of LA bahia,
Between San Marcos Isle and Conception Pt. to the South is a good place to see the jumping phenomena on a consistant basis
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durrelllrobert
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old post
Cypress - 10-20-2006 at 15:38
First, you catch a stingray, then punch out some plugs with a sharpened piece of pipe, Remove skin. Scallops.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bob Durrell
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baitcast
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You have seen the big ones now here is the little ones.
Anyone can catch fish in a boat but only \"El Pescador Grande\" can get them from the beach.
I hope when my time comes the old man will let me bring my rod and the water will be warm and clear.
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thefishkiller
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Stingrays Boiling
A little video i shot while fishing a few miles north of san jose.
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DENNIS
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Quote: | Originally posted by thefishkiller
Stingrays Boiling
A little video i shot while fishing a few miles north of san jose. |
Amazing footage. Thanks...and welcome to BajaNomad.
.
[Edited on 1-1-2012 by DENNIS]
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