Swim with humpback whales in MoΚ»orea, September 2027 Β· from CHF 4,500See the trip β†’
Ocean Calling

Ocean Atlas Β· Animals

Rays

Spinetail devil ray

Mobula mobular

Spinetail devil rays are huge, far ranging filter feeders. If one passes, we stay still and let the ray choose the encounter.

Critically EndangeredIn 18 Atlas countries

Critically Endangered (IUCN, 2025) means it is at extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.

Spinetail devil ray gliding in blue water off Crete with small fish
Photo: Sarah Faulwetter, iNaturalist, CC BY
Spinetail devil ray seen from below, long thin tail behind
Photo: Julien Renoult, iNaturalist, CC BY
Spinetail devil ray swimming in open blue water off Spain
Photo: Xavier Mas, iNaturalist, CC BY
Young spinetail devil ray near the surface with small cleaner fish
Photo: Paulo Mascaretti, iNaturalist, CC0
Spinetail devil ray passing under a boat near Loreto, Baja California
Photo: Sula Vanderplank, iNaturalist, CC BY

Photos show the species, not always the places on this page.

Length

Largest reliably recorded about 3.5 m (11.5 ft) across (disc width); adults mature at about 2 to 2.4 m (6.6 to 7.9 ft) across

Weight

Not reliably measured

Next to a person

A big adult is about twice as wide as a person is tall

What it eats

Mainly small plankton such as krill and other tiny crustaceans, filtered from the water.

Around people

Calm, give space

How it lives

The spinetail devil ray lives in coastal and shelf waters of warm seas around the world. It is often alone but can gather in large numbers to feed or breed. It spends most time shallower than 50 m, yet can dive to 1,112 m. Females usually have one large pup after about 12 months, every 1 to 3 years.

Where it goes

A real traveller, but not every ray follows the same route. Rays tagged off New Zealand swam 1,400 to 1,800 km north to waters near Vanuatu and Fiji at the end of summer. In the Mediterranean, tracked rays moved east toward the Levantine Sea with the seasons, and one tagged off Gaza swam to Spain and back within a year.

Populations

Found in warm and temperate seas worldwide, including the Mediterranean, but its populations are patchy. In the southwest Gulf of California, courtship of this species was recorded, mostly off La Ventana and Ensenada de Muertos, but most big devil ray schools in Baja are Munk's devil rays and spinetails there are occasional. The IUCN now lists it as Critically Endangered (2025), mainly because of fishing. Females usually have only one pup at a time, so numbers recover very slowly.

Meet it respectfully

Stay still and let the ray choose how close to come. Never chase, touch, block or feed it, and never swim through a group. Boats should stay slow and quiet. We avoid fishing or feeding set ups. In Mexico, catching or keeping this ray is not allowed.

Fun fact

Tap the bulb to light it up.

Where it goes

Follow its journey

Choose a journey and watch it travel. Every line comes from satellite tracking or documented research, and the source is named.

StartEndJourney (the line joins documented areas; real paths vary)

Where you may meet it

Spinetail devil ray in the Ocean Atlas

Places we have researched where this animal is recorded. It is never guaranteed, and some places are for watching from the boat only.

FijiTanzaniaW. SaharaCanadaUnited States of AmericaKazakhstanUzbekistanPapua New GuineaIndonesiaArgentinaChileDem. Rep. CongoSomaliaKenyaSudanChadHaitiDominican Rep.RussiaBahamasFalkland Is.NorwayGreenlandFr. S. Antarctic LandsTimor-LesteSouth AfricaLesothoMexicoUruguayBrazilBoliviaPeruColombiaPanamaCosta RicaNicaraguaHondurasEl SalvadorGuatemalaBelizeVenezuelaGuyanaSurinameFranceEcuadorPuerto RicoJamaicaCubaZimbabweBotswanaNamibiaSenegalMaliMauritaniaBeninNigerNigeriaCameroonTogoGhanaCΓ΄te d'IvoireGuineaGuinea-BissauLiberiaSierra LeoneBurkina FasoCentral African Rep.CongoGabonEq. GuineaZambiaMalawiMozambiqueeSwatiniAngolaBurundiIsraelLebanonMadagascarPalestineGambiaTunisiaAlgeriaJordanUnited Arab EmiratesQatarKuwaitIraqOmanVanuatuCambodiaThailandLaosMyanmarVietnamNorth KoreaSouth KoreaMongoliaIndiaBangladeshBhutanNepalPakistanAfghanistanTajikistanKyrgyzstanTurkmenistanIranSyriaArmeniaSwedenBelarusUkrainePolandAustriaHungaryMoldovaRomaniaLithuaniaLatviaEstoniaGermanyBulgariaGreeceTurkeyAlbaniaCroatiaSwitzerlandLuxembourgBelgiumNetherlandsPortugalSpainIrelandNew CaledoniaSolomon Is.New ZealandAustraliaSri LankaChinaTaiwanItalyDenmarkUnited KingdomIcelandAzerbaijanGeorgiaPhilippinesMalaysiaBruneiSloveniaFinlandSlovakiaCzechiaEritreaJapanParaguayYemenSaudi ArabiaN. CyprusCyprusMoroccoEgyptLibyaEthiopiaDjiboutiSomalilandUgandaRwandaBosnia and Herz.MacedoniaSerbiaMontenegroKosovoTrinidad and TobagoS. SudanLa Ventana, MexicoGuadalupe Island, MexicoKaikōura, New ZealandPoor Knights Islands, New ZealandBay of Islands, New ZealandHauraki Gulf, New ZealandAkaroa and Banks Peninsula, New ZealandLastovo, CroatiaLoΕ‘inj, CroatiaVis and KomiΕΎa, CroatiaAjaccio and the Gulf of Ajaccio, FranceBonifacio, Porto-Vecchio and the Lavezzi Islands, FranceMarseille, the Calanques and Cassis, FrancePort-Cros, Porquerolles and HyΓ¨res, FranceVillefranche-sur-Mer and Nice, FranceUstica, Sicily, ItalyTavolara and Capo Carbonara, Sardinia, ItalyPortofino and the Ligurian Sea, ItalyPlemmirio, Syracuse, ItalyFlorida Keys (Key Largo), United StatesLa Jolla and the Channel Islands, United StatesMaui, United StatesOΚ»ahu, United StatesSan Diego and La Jolla, United StatesJuneau and Southeast Alaska, United StatesGlacier Bay, United StatesSeward and Kenai Fjords, United StatesCabo de Palos and Cartagena, SpainEl Hierro and La Restinga, SpainFormentera, SpainFuerteventura, SpainGran Canaria, SpainIbiza, SpainJΓ‘vea (XΓ bia), SpainL'Estartit and the Medes Islands, SpainLa Herradura and Costa Tropical, SpainLa Palma, SpainLanzarote, SpainMallorca, SpainMenorca, SpainMΓ‘laga and the Costa del Sol, SpainTabarca and Alicante, SpainTarifa and the Strait of Gibraltar, SpainTenerife, SpainMergui Archipelago and Burma Banks, MyanmarLampi Marine National Park, MyanmarAyeyarwady River dolphins, MyanmarAmed, Bali, IndonesiaGili Trawangan, IndonesiaKomodo, IndonesiaGili Air, IndonesiaMaratua and Derawan, IndonesiaRaja Ampat, IndonesiaNusa Penida, IndonesiaLovina, Bali, IndonesiaCoron, Palawan, PhilippinesMoalboal, Cebu, PhilippinesPanglao and Balicasag, Bohol, PhilippinesSiquijor, PhilippinesApo Island and Dauin, PhilippinesApo Reef, PhilippinesBoracay, PhilippinesEl Nido and Bacuit Bay, PhilippinesPort Barton and San Vicente, PhilippinesTubbataha Reefs, PhilippinesPerhentian Islands, MalaysiaTioman Island, MalaysiaSwatch of No Ground, BangladeshSundarbans, BangladeshCox's Bazar and Sonadia, BangladeshSaint Martin's Island, BangladeshTofo, MozambiqueMΓ‘ncora, Los Γ“rganos and Cabo Blanco, PeruPunta Sal and the Tumbes coast, PeruParacas and the Ballestas Islands, PeruBaird Bay and Eyre Peninsula, AustraliaBarunguba and Narooma, AustraliaBremer Bay, AustraliaCairns, Port Douglas and the Ribbon Reefs, AustraliaChristmas Island, AustraliaCocos (Keeling) Islands, AustraliaLady Elliot Island, AustraliaLord Howe Island, AustraliaNingaloo, AustraliaRowley Shoals, AustraliaTasman Peninsula and Eaglehawk Neck, AustraliaMaria Island and the east coast, AustraliaLakshadweep (Agatti, Bangaram, Kadmat), IndiaNetrani and Murudeshwar, IndiaSwaraj Dweep (Havelock) and Barren Island, IndiaOkinawa, JapanMafia Island, TanzaniaMikindani and Mnazi Bay, TanzaniaZanzibar - Matemwe, Mnemba and Chumbe, Tanzania

Travel with usComing soonTrusted referralExploringOn pause, story onlyEthics pass

Country colour: pink where we travel, blue where we are exploring or refer, grey for story only.

AustraliaBangladeshCroatiaFranceIndiaIndonesiaItalyJapanMalaysiaMexicoMozambiqueMyanmarNew ZealandPeruPhilippinesSpainTanzaniaUnited States
Sources for this page

Facts checked 26 September 2026. Photos: Unsplash licence, or Creative Commons as shown on each photo.

For partners

Work in ocean travel?

We are always happy to hear from exceptional local operators, accommodation, conservation organisations and destination experts. If your work fits responsible, small-group ocean travel, we would love to learn more.

Partner with Ocean Calling
You might like

New: mobula rays in La Ventana, May 2027

CHF 2,720

Book now β†’