After more than a year in residence at the world’s largest open-air marine habitat at Atlantis Paradise Island, Hope the manta ray was ready to return to her native Bahamian waters.

“When Hope came to us in July 2020, she was about 8 feet wide in wingspan. She almost doubled her size in 15 months, so she’s really done well here,” says Dave Wert, Aquarium Director at Atlantis Paradise Island. “We’ve placed a satellite tag on Hope to track the manta ray wherever she goes. We can tell the depth and temperature of the water and exactly where she’s travelled, so we get information that helps us to learn more about the biology and the life history of manta rays,” said Wert.

Atlantis is one of only two aquariums in the Western Hemisphere to care for giant mantas and has been studying and releasing manta rays for more than two decades. Hope is the 10^th manta ray we’ve studied and released, and each time has contributed to better scientific understanding of the species.

Watch as Hope glides gracefully through the water as she is released to the open ocean to start her next great adventure.