When the codename for Ubuntu 26.10 was announced, I suspect there was a measurable surge in users searching for the definition of “stonking” across search engines and the various popular AI chatbots. As it so happens, the rather silly sounding word is actually a bit of British slang that denotes “something of considerable size, or an object that is quite impressive.” Now despite my Cornish last name, I’m not a Brit and my English slang lexicon is admittedly limited, so it initially seemed like an odd pairing with our mascot. Upon closer inspection, and a bit of aquatic reflection, it may be a perfect descriptor.
I have had the privilege of seeing our chosen mascot for this release, the stingray, up close on a few occasions and photos often fail to capture the true size of a full grown sea pancake. Some larger species of rays can exceed 2 meters in width and nearly 400 kg! Stonking indeed! In many cases, animals of that size tend to be a bit slow or plodding, but not rays. They move with such grace and fluidity that one could swear that they are flying. They soar through the ocean depths with the velocity of an unladen swallow in a magnificent display of evolutionary refinement.
Stingrays are a beautiful example that grand, complex things can still move with agility and grace. And that’s what we want people to think about Ubuntu. You see, Ubuntu is made up of millions of lines of code, crafted by scores of contributors and volunteers, knitted together by countless interworking components and systems that flow seamlessly into one polished form. In the vast sea of the connected world where it’s easy to get swept away by dangerous waves, you can always trust Ubuntu to guide you to safer currents.
You can download the official Stonking Stingray wallpapers in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes here.
Drawing from the depths
Our undersea artist must have donned his diving suit and submerged his bathysphere studio directly into the Benthic Zone for this one. Capturing both the scale and elegance of a stingray takes a master naut, and Marcus Haslam accomplished just that feat. In his own words:
“For Stonking Stingray, my goal was to capture the stingray’s grace and elegance. I refined the shape to more closely resemble the actual animal, with wide fins sweeping gracefully into the body and a long tail that creates a natural sense of movement in the design.
“While working on Stonking, I spoke with someone who encountered a stingray while diving. They described its remarkable presence and the extraordinary way it moved through the water—almost as if it were flying rather than swimming. That image stayed with me and became central to my design approach.
“For me, Stonking’s character is rooted in its elegance and refined form. Instead of focusing on facial expression, I let the stingray’s shape and movement define its personality. I also introduced a bold, sweeping shape into the fin, which adds graphic character and further emphasises movement in the overall form.
“The dots add another dimension. They stay the same size; the gradation gives them a sense of movement and direction. It adds energy to the background and gives us something interesting to play with in animation.
“I’ve kept the circle to bring everything together and give the mascot a strong, simple framework. The stingray’s shape fits naturally within it, while the long tail adds movement and gives Stonking a distinctive silhouette.
“Overall, I wanted Stonking to feel simple, elegant, and full of movement – taking what is already captivating about a stingray and transforming that into a strong graphic character.”
Wallpaper fever
The temperature over on the Ubuntu Discourse always rises when we announce the wallpaper competition. For Stonking Stingray, our community caught quite the bug, or rather, quite the fever (which, coincidentally, is the term for a group of rays). In this, one of our most engaged interim release wallpaper competitions, the community provided a very diverse and stunning collection of works. Unfortunately we cannot include them all, so the community made their voices heard and chose their favorites. It’s my great honor and pleasure to present the winners of the Stonking Stingray wallpaper competition:
Mascot Category
Stonker Light / Dark – @moskalenko-v
Mythical stingray – @jens-42
Stonking Stingray Minimal (Dark/Light) – @dmxplx
Rausku (Light/Dark) – @hattivatti43
Digital / Abstract Category
Alpha Waves (Light/Dark) – @iryge
Stingray Nocturne – @normangeek
Red Tone (Light/Dark) – @jdecroocq
Ascending Waves (Light/Dark) – @iryge
Photography Category
michin acuarium – @jarsoca99
Luce e Ombra – @jacop02169
Derwentwater – @mendhak
Stingray – @stephane93130
Getting involved
The Ubuntu Wallpaper Competition is just one of many ways that you can contribute to our community. We welcome and encourage you to bring your unique skills and experience to our great collective project. There is always room to make a splash!
Learn about the many ways that you can get involved:
