Celebrate World Manta Day with Ocean Armour: Wrap Yourself in Wonder!
When it comes to the mysteries of the deep blue sea, few creatures captivate our imagination quite like the majestic manta ray. Graceful, enigmatic, and vital to the heath of our oceans, mantas are truly fascinating marine beings. That’s why, on this World Manta Day, we invite all ocean lovers to dive into the world of these gentle giants and discover way that you can help towards conservation of their habitats, including choosing our Manta Ray Changing Ponchos & Beach Towels!
World Manta Day: A Tribute to the “Butterflies of the Sea”
World Manta Day, celebrated on September 17th, is a global event dedicated to raising awareness about these remarkable creatures. Mantas, known as the “butterflies of the sea” due to their elegant, wing-like pectoral fins, are not just a sight to behold but also critical to the health of our marine ecosystems.
Have you experienced these majestic creatures on your ocean adventures? Share them with us on insta @ocean.armour and help get mantas trending this World Manta Day. #worldmantaday
World Manta Day 2023: This year’s theme is Tourism
Tourism plays a critical role in manta ray conservation since there is no better way to raise awareness and inspire than an in-person experience. Increased awareness and connection with these gentle giants helps generate funding towards efforts to protect their habitats and prevent their exploitation. However, it’s a tricky balance to ensure tourism is managed responsibly to reduce the human impacts on the fragile habitats. This year, join the conversation on how we can connect with manta rays, admire them, while also ensuring their conservation is top of mind.
Why do we at Ocean Armour HQ find Mantas so fascinating?
Their huge size, with some reaching wing spans of 7 metres, makes them a wonder to witness for divers, snorkelers, and ocean enthusiasts. Some of our favourite in water moments have been when we have encountered manta rays while diving or swimming.
They are mesmerising to watch, but there’s more to these gentle giants than meets the eye:
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🧠 Did you know that mantas have one of the biggest brains in the fish world? It’s thought that they have developed areas for learning, problem solving and communicating! That’s what makes rays so playful, curious and social, and it’s possible they might even recognise themselves in mirror, a sign of self-awareness. Yep, they are the brainiacs of our oceans.
- 🦈 They are closely related to sharks, and other rays, which means they have a skeleton made of cartilage rather than bone.
- 🦐 Despite their huge size, mantas are harmless to humans. One of the many reasons that interacting with them is an awe-inspiraing experience that leaves a lasting impression. They feed on zooplankton, which are microscopic animals that are often almost invisible to our human eye, and is made up of copepods, mysid shrimp, mollusk larvae, fish eggs and crab larva. Given their size, they need to eat a lot to sustain themselves. When you see mantas gracefully twirling around, this is often them feeding.
- ☝️ Every manta ray has a completely unique spot pattern on it’s belly. The unique pattern can be used to identify each manta ray, much like we humans can be identified by our unique fingertips.
- 🐘 Mantas can live up to 50 years, making them some of the longest-living creatures in the ocean.
Finally, what we know about mantas is that they undertake incredible migrations, travelling vast distances across our oceans. The details of their migratory routes are still being unravelled by scientists.
Just like almost every other creature in our oceans, mantas are also extremely vulnerable to environmental threats, including plastic pollution, overfishing and habitat degradation. Their numbers are falling in many regions around the world. That’s why supporting manta conservation efforts is more important than ever.
How can you help contribute to conservation efforts?
- Share you manta experiences, and your manta love socially to help get mantas trending worldwide, and inspire others to fall in love with these gentle giants #worldmantaday
- Meet our partners, Manta Trust: find out more about their education and conservation work. You can donate directly, or spread awareness of the great work they do, or both!
- Wrap Yourself in Manta Magic with Ocean Armour! At Ocean Armour, we’re not just passionate about the ocean; we’re committed to giving back to protecting it for generations to come. That’s why we’ve created our exclusive Manta Ray changing poncho and travel towels, designed to celebrate these magnificent creatures and promote sustainable ocean living.
We've been blown away with their popularity, and so unfortunately both our Manta Ray changing ponchos and travel towels are sold out right now. We're so sorry, but the great news is that they'll be back in stock in a few short weeks. Sign up to our emails (at the bottom of this page) to be the first to hear when they're back in stock!!
10% of our profits from our Manta Ray inspired changing ponchos and travel towels are donated to Manta Trust and the amazing conservation & education projects they undertake, helping ensure a brighter future for our mantas and our oceans.
Manta Ray Changing Poncho: Yes, out changing poncho is a practical accessory for surfers, divers, and any ocean lovers, turning anywhere into your very own changing room. But, it’s also a statement of your love for the ocean (and ours!), and your commitment to preserving it. Made sustainably, it’s not only quick-drying, soft, and lightweight, it’s eco-friendly, reducing your carbon footprint.
Manta Ray Beach Towel: Whether you’re spending a relaxing day at the beach, or drying off while on holiday, our manta ray beach towel adds a touch of ocean magic to your beach outings. Created with care and sustainability in mind, it’s the perfect companion for any marine enthusiast.
Join the Ocean Armour Family
On this World Manta Day, we invite you to become a part of the Ocean Armour movement. By supporting our sustainably made, manta inspired changing poncho and beach towel, you’re making a tangible difference in the fight to protect our oceans.
Check out our other designs, inspired by our oceans and other amazing marine creatures, with every design contributing to marine conservation efforts in our Australian oceans.
Sustainably Made Turtle Changing Poncho
Sustainably Made Whale Shark Changing Poncho
Sustainably Made Turtle Travel Towel
Sustainably Made Whale Shark Travel Towel
Join us in celebrating the grace of mantas, honour the beauty of the ocean, and take a step towards a more sustainable future together.
Team Ocean Armour xx
