Mobula thurstoni
Silhouette: Steven Traver · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The bentfin devil ray (Mobula thurstoni), also known as the lesser devil ray, smoothtail devil ray, smoothtail mobula or Thurston's devil ray, is a species of ray in the family Mobulidae. It is found worldwide in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate oceans, with records from Australia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Japan, Malaysia, Maldives, Mexico, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Oman, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United States (California), Uruguay, Vanuatu and throughout the central and western Pacific. It likely occurs in many other locations in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate oceans. It is found both offshore and near the coast.
The bentfin devil ray can reach a disc width of 189 cm (6.2 ft) and weigh about 54 kg (120 lb). The length of the disc is about 1.95 times its width. The front edge of the disc is nearly straight near the snout, but curves sinuously as it approaches the broad, triangular pectoral fins. The back edge is concave, becoming straight as it approaches the tail. On either side... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Galápagos Islands | 🇪🇨 Ecuador |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Lesser Devil Ray sighting in Galápagos Islands on a given day, based on 24 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 11th most-seen of the 16 sharks and rays we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Lesser Devil Ray in Galápagos Islands on a given day, against under 5% in July, September and December, the lowest months. That is one of Galápagos Islands's wettest months, with about 50 mm of rain against almost none in August.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Lesser Devil Ray sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Galápagos Islands, in our data
Galápagos Islands is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Lesser Devil Ray sightings: about 20% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same genus: Mobula
The closest relatives of the Lesser Devil Ray that you can see in Galápagos Islands (genus Mobula, Devil Rays) are Oceanic Manta Ray (about 30%) and Munk's Pygmy Devil Ray (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Lesser Devil Ray is recorded against all the sharks and rays logged in Galápagos Islands (24 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
