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Manta Ray was extremely interactive
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date: 6/9/2009
Author:Nick Brennan
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Weather: Sunny and Warm
Air Temp: 25.3șC
Wind: Variable winds 5-10 knots
Water Temp: 23șC
Water Visibility: 30+ metres
Sea State: Glassy
It was a pristine day to get out amongst the action of Lady Elliot Island with picture perfect weather and lots of exciting wildlife.
The first bit of excitement came when a pod of four humpback whales came in past the lighthouse bommies which coincidentally was right where the glass bottom boat was! One of them was doing fin slaps on the water, carrying on and generally looking like it was having a great old time. Guests were blown away and were not expecting to have an experience with the whales here at Lady Elliot. They were certainly not expecting to get so close! Then on the second boat the Manta Rays showed up. The visibility was premium today and was at least thirty metres so the manta rays were clearly visible for everybody to see. Guests jumped in the water and had a sensational snorkel amongst the abundance of marine life. Two of the snorkelers spotted a manta ray from the boat and decided to swim out to it. They came back beaming about the experience. They said the Manta Ray was extremely interactive coming back around half a dozen times to look at them. They were blown away! Guests also had some fantastic moments with turtles and the large schools of plankton feeding fish. It was a breathtaking day in the water.
In the afternoon guests came to fish feeding where the fish were ravenous. There was a great variety of species including the diamond scale mullet, the sergeant major and the moon wrasse. When the guide threw the fish feed into the water the fish went crazy much to the delight of the children. The guide explained some interesting facts and also helped guests to find some fish they were looking for.
In the evening guests came on a Night Stalk in the warm spring air and gazed up at the beautiful stars. It was an amazing night and a great tour to finish the day on.
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Manta - Jess
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