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Manta Pacific Research Foundation

Oahu Manta Ray Identification Project
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Daniela
image by Chris Knight 2016/09/05
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Number: 9
Name: Daniela
Sex: Female
Current Size: ~10'
Last Sighting: September 5/2015
First Size: ~10'
Date of First Sighting: September 5/2016
Sighted By: Chris Knight
Location ID'ed: YO-257 shipwreck
   

Comments: Manta ray Daniela with a wingspan of approximately 10 feet, approached us while finishing our dive at YO-257 shipwreck off the coast of Waikiki. We were doing decompression at a depth of 20 feet, hanging out above the shipwreck sitting in 90 feet of water below us. Visibility was excellent. We had been chasing the Atlantis submarines and photographing them, using dive propulsion vehicles. The submarines were still visible below, cruising past the shipwreck. Daniela approached us heading west to east at a depth of about 10 feet. After making a close pass to check us out, she dived lower, seemingly chasing the smaller of the two Atlantis submarines as it headed southeast at a depth of approximately 70 feet deep. Divers who saw her: Underwater photographer Chris Knight, Kim Jeffries, Mark Mohler, free diver Matt (Deco Duck) Asada. A metal print of Daniela is also now on display at Haleiwa Art Gallery.