V.A.I

‘VAI’ is the Fijian word for Manta Ray. All of these images were captured in The Fiji Islands. 
Manta rays can grow over 4 meters across and have the largest brains of all fish species, comparable to a similar sized mammal, meaning they are highly intelligent and social. When you immerse yourself in their world they are accepting and inquisitive, each manta is an individual, some are more inquisitive than others, some more playful and others more fearful. But as a species they give some of the most intimate human to wild animal encounters that are possible on planet earth. A truly remarkable fish that is not only mythical in nature but also human culture, these NFTs will take you to a world that not many have seen, and give you experiences that can only be dreamed of.

On this day a storm rolled in, churning the surface water and bringing plankton up. We were greeted by 8 manta rays feeding in azure water. There is always something incredibly special about the blue of the ocean during a storm

STORM

A young male manta ray shows off his somersaulting ability in the crystal clear South Pacific blue

SHIMMER

The perspective of a manta ray gliding through the South Pacific Ocean.

VIEW

When groups of manta rays come together to feed they have an incredible ability to put on a 10/10 show of synchronisation, each manta matches the wing beat of the next, some somersault on time, others wait half a beat. Nature in it’s most pure and artistic form.

THE DANCE

Sideways feeding is a technique mainly female manta rays use, they swim on their side trying to scoop up as much plankton as possible before turning to swim back through the plankton. Here Elsa is using this very technique to make the most of the plankton bloom in the azure South Pacific water.

LIGHT

A manta known as ‘Pavlova’ takes the lead in a feeding train, if you look closely, you can see Pavlova’s baby bulge at the back of her body, she is heavily pregnant. Large, older females often lead the feeding trains as their experience will show younger mantas the most effective way to forage on different kinds of plankton.

MATRIACH

A manta feeds alone with a lone snorkeler in the distance.

ISOLATION

As the sunsets we come into golden hour underwater, a peak time for manta ray foraging. This melanistic manta begins to feed in plankton rich water as the beautiful golden light filters through.

GOLDEN

A manta swims up from the depths feeding on plankton. Many small fish species use manta rays as cover from predators, staying close to their huge flappy friend so that predators cannot get to them easily. Here, a manta we know as Maddie comes gliding past with a group of fish using her as cover.

GLIDE

Melanistic manta rays are a very special phenomenon, very few of the mantas in the world are melanistic, Fiji has a very high proportion of melanistic mantas. Making it one of the only places in the world you can swim with these stealth bombers.

DOWN THE HATCH

A manta ray somersaults from a side view. Somersaulting is a technique manta rays use to feed on plankton. With their mouths a gape they swim repeatedly through dense clouds of plankton, filtering out as much as possible. It looks like underwater ballet when witnessed first hand.

BALLET

A manta ray swims underneath me while feeding. These animals are incredibly inquisitive and intelligent, when you lock eyes with a manta ray underwater it can be one of the most intimate experiences on the planet.

EYE TO EYE

I am an underwater photographer and marine researcher based in the Fiji Islands. My passion and love is the tropical marine world where I have been lucky enough to photograph and work with some of the largest ocean inhabitants such as mantas down to the tiniest critters like pygmy seahorse. Currently I run Manta Project Fiji where we work towards the conservation of manta rays across the South Pacific. My first collection will be a fine art series focusing on manta rays and the charismatic beauty they possess, their feeding somersaults look like a dance that has been synchronised over generations of practice, a real sight to behold.

Luke Gordon

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