An animal that swims in the depths of the ocean as if it was flying in the sky

Reaching widths of nearly 11 feet (over 3 m), the spotted eagle ray is one of the largest eagle rays, with only the mantas growing bigger. Spotted eagle rays, like all eagle rays, are active swimmers and do not lie motionless on the seafloor, like the closely related whiptail stingrays (e.g., southern stingray). They are foraging predators and are known to eat a variety of invertebrate and fish prey. Just like the name implies, the spotted eagle ray is covered in spots and other markings. It is unmistakable with any other species throughout its range.