Giant Oceanic Manta Ray vs Leao

Manta birostris compared with Panthera leo

Key Differences

• Giant Oceanic Manta Ray is Endangered while Leao is Vulnerable.
• Giant Oceanic Manta Ray is omnivore while Leao is carnivore.
• Giant Oceanic Manta Ray is 7.4x heavier than Leao.
• Giant Oceanic Manta Ray lives longer (50 years vs 15 years).

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Giant Oceanic Manta Ray	Leao
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (cordados)	Chordata (cordados)
Class	Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous Fish)	Mammalia (mamíferos)
Order	Lamniformes (Mackerel Sharks)	Carnivora (carnívoros)
Family	Rhincodontidae (Whale Sharks)	Felidae (Cats)
Genus	Rhincodon (Whale Sharks)	Panthera (Big Cats)
Species	Manta birostris	Panthera leo

Evolutionary Relationship

Giant Oceanic Manta Ray and Leao share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (cordados)

Conservation Status

Giant Oceanic Manta Ray

EN — Endangered

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Leao

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~23.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Giant Oceanic Manta Ray	Leao
Diet	Omnivore	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	50 years	15 years
Average Length	5.0 m	2.5 m
Average Weight	1.4 t	190.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Giant Oceanic Manta Ray

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including flooded grasslands and savannas, mangrove forests and coastal wetlands, and tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, among 5 distinct biome types spanning the Afrotropic and Indomalayan and Neotropic realms.

Range

Distributed across Australia, Ecuador, Maldives, Mexico, and Mozambique. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Leao

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and flooded grasslands and savannas, among 7 distinct biome types spanning the Afrotropic and Neotropic and Oceanian realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, and Kenya. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Giant Oceanic Manta Ray

A manta-diabo-gigante (Manta birostris) é a maior espécie de raia, com uma envergadura de até 7 metros. São animais filtradores que se alimentam de plâncton.

Leao

O maior felino selvagem da África, o leão pode atingir até 250 kg e é o único felídeo social, vivendo em grupos nas savanas e pastagens da África Subsaariana. Os machos se distinguem por suas icônicas juba. Como predadores de topo, regulam as populações de herbívoros e mantêm o equilíbrio do ecossistema. Classificado como Vulnerável devido à perda de habitat e ao conflito entre humanos e vida selvagem.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 1 countries:

🇪🇨 Ecuador