Giant oceanic manta ray

Giant oceanic manta ray; Temporal range: Early Miocene to Present
Conservation status
	; Endangered (IUCN 3.1)
	CITES Appendix II
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Chondrichthyes
Subclass:	Elasmobranchii
Order:	Myliobatiformes
Family:	Mobulidae
Genus:	Mobula
Species:	M. birostris
Binomial name
	Mobula birostris; (Walbaum, 1792)
	Range of the giant oceanic manta ray
Synonyms
	List Raja birostris Walbaum, 1792; Manta birostris (Walbaum, 1792); Manta brevirostris (Walbaum, 1792) (lapsus calami); Raja manatia Bloch & Schneider, 1801; Cephalopterus vampyrus Mitchill, 1824; Cephalopterus manta Bancroft, 1829; Manta americana Bancroft, 1829; Ceratoptera ehrenbergi Müller & Henle, 1841; Ceratoptera ehrenbergii Müller & Henle, 1841; Manta ehrenbergii (Müller & Henle, 1841); Ceratoptera johnii Müller & Henle, 1841; Brachioptilon hamiltoni Hamilton & Newman, 1849; Manta hamiltoni (Hamilton & Newman, 1849); Cephaloptera stelligera Günther, 1870; Manta raya Baer, 1899; ;

The giant oceanic manta ray, giant manta ray, or oceanic manta ray (Mobula birostris) is a species of ray in the family Mobulidae and the largest type of ray in the world. It is circumglobal and is typically found in tropical and subtropical waters but can also be found in temperate waters. Until 2017, the species was classified in the genus Manta, along with the smaller reef manta ray (Mobula alfredi). DNA testing revealed that both mantas are closer related to some Mobula species than these are to other Mobula, being claded together. As a result, the two Manta species were absorbed into Mobula to reflect the new classification.