Stunning Aerial Image Of Devil Rays

Via: nationalgeographic

In 2009, Florian Schulz captured this incredible image off the coast of Baja California in Mexico. There, in the Sea of Cortez, the German photographer and his pilot were looking for migrating whales when they suddenly found themselves directly above this massive congregation of Munk's devil rays.

Classified as 'Near Threatened' by The International Union for Conservation of Nature, Munk's devil rays are especially vulnerable to the near-invisible curtains of gill nets used by fishermen, and witnessing a gathering of this size and density was nothing short of amazing. The striking composition of this aerial image earned the title of Overall Winner of the 'Underwater World' category in the 2010 Environmental Photographer of the Year awards.