In South Africa in May 2007, the Natal Sharks Board came across a rare catch during a routine check of bathing safety nets. A young manta ray measuring about eight feet across was caught in the nets. The manta ray was in need of care, and the NSB worked quickly to take it to Sea World at Durban’s uShaka Marine World theme park.

Dr. Mark Penning, the executive director and a veterinarian, went to work on the animal’s wounds. At first, the animal would not eat, but her primary caretaker, Jerry Ntombela, kept at it for nearly two weeks until she started eating krill from a ladle.

The manta ray became known as Nandi, named after the mother of Shaka, historic king of the Zulu Kingdom. Nandi grew to more than nine feet across and was close to outgrowing the exhibit at uShaka. One option was to release Nandi into the Ocean, but the team at uShaka saw the power a manta ray had to inspire people to be stewards of the ocean. Additionally, Dr. Penning did not want to see Nandi end up in the shark nets again or on a fisherman's boat.

His concerns were alleviated when the Georgia Aquarium reached out to see if uShaka would be amenable to moving Nandi to Georgia Aquarium’s 6.3 million gallon habitat. She safely made the 9,000-mile journey during July 2008, and is currently gliding gracefully in the Ocean Voyager tank. It is the first time that a manta ray has been moved from one side of the world to the other, and the first time a manta ray has ever been on display in a U.S. aquarium.

During her year at uShaka, more than 500,000 people saw and learned from Nandi, including school groups from the countryside, many of whom have never even seen the sea. Georgia Aquarium hopes to continue this trend, educating millions of visitors each year about manta rays and inspiring conservation.