Save the Mantas

The oceans are full of many new surprises!

With #worldmantaday upcoming (17th September), both this and next weeks' creature features will be manta rays! There are two species of mantas: the reef manta a...nd the oceanic manta. Reef mantas, (Mobula alfredi), (pictured) have been found to have a wingspan measuring up to 4.5m and the larger oceanic mantas can reach up to 7m! But, despite their size, mantas eat the small stuff...plankton, filtering their food through gill plates. Mantas have the largest brain to body ratio of any fish, with especially developed areas for learning, problem solving and communicating. Every individual can be distinguished as they have unique spot patterns on their belly. Size: Reef mantas have a wingspan of ~4m and weigh up to 700kg Distribution: Reef Manta Rays are widely distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the Indian and West Pacific Ocean Diet: Filtering zooplankton through their gill plates, a mantas diet consists of copepods, mysid shrimp, crab larva, mollusk larvae and fish eggs Behaviour: Like dolphins, manta rays are intelligent and perform collective behaviours such as foraging and playing. They are curious, often approaching humans, and individuals appear to have different personalities IUCN Status: Vulnerable - like many ocean creatures, mantas are declining in numbers - threats include entanglement in fishing lines, demand for their gill plates and climate change affecting the abundance of the zooplankton they prey upon Manta Trust

https://eci.ec.europa.eu/012/public/#/screen/home

Marine Megafauna The Marine Megafauna Foundation would like to introduce you to Ocean Giants, a brand-new FREE quarterly magazine. In this first issue, they are highlighting a major marine protection win in Mozambique, along with the results from some of our recent research and conservation initiatives. From the urban mantas of Florida to the introverted whale sharks of Tanzania, MMF scientists and their wonderful collaborators have been making new discoveries across the world. http://www.marinemegafauna.org/magazine

DEVASTATING MANTA NEWS Today, the conservation status of the giant manta has been uplisted to Endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. This an...nouncement serves to confirm what we have long suspected this gentle marine giant is finding it hard to cope with intensifying anthropogenic pressures around the globe. The giant manta ray now joins over 16,000 endangered species to be assessed with this serious threat level. At this stage, 30% of sharks and rays are now threatened with extinction. After first describing this species, "the realization that the giant manta ray is now in danger of extinction is a hard pill to swallow, MMF co-founder Dr. Andrea Marshall admits. We are still busy learning about this extraordinary creature and we have only scratched the surface. There is so much more we need to understand, but at this stage, we have put that all aside in favor of protecting the last remaining populations of giant mantas across the globe. Please consider giving to our end-of-year fundraiser to build three new ocean giant research centers that will directly impact the future of this now endangered species: https://marinemegafaunafoundation.org/giving-tuesday/ Link to our full press release: https://marinemegafaunafoundation.org//giant-manta-become/

https://www.masterliveaboards.com/5-things-you-didnt-know/

https://youtu.be/LaO1wLMRaFU

Philippines Manta Update - Ticao Manta Conservation Ticao Island conservation work with manta rays dates back to the early 2000's when a local group called the Blue Zoo worked with Save-the-Mantas.org to develop posters that were displayed in the ports and fish markets to persuade fisherman to not kill the rays. The poster were very effective and led directly to today’s protection of manta rays and whale sharks in many of the areas of the Philippines. In 2002, Rico Calleja, ...a local dive instructor, heard stories from local fishermen about a large number of mantas in an area off Ticao island. This information helped him pinpoint the location of a manta cleaning station. After operating a dive shop in Donsol he later established a conservation station that would become Ticao Island Resort. Marvin Mondrano, Abel Bahillo and others recorded frequent manta sightings at the cleaning station which was named the Manta Bowl. This area has become a very popular dive destination. The resident manta population has been studied with 30-40 individuals identified. The Manta Bowl cleaning station is an ideal location to record sightings over a long period of time and is useful in distinguishing the resident population from the pelagic (migratory) animals. More recent research by Yotam Barr, a marine biologist from the University of Tel Aviv and ongoing work by LAMAVE (Large Marine Vertebrates NGO) suggests that mantas frequent the area all year for the purpose of getting cleaned by small fish. Even though the area is protected, manta rays still get caught up in fishing nets. Through the assistance of Mondrano and other local divers, as many as five manta rays are cut free of monofilament fishing lines each year.

Support Misool Baseftin's Manta Conservation Project in Lamakera, Central Indonesia

Good news for Indonesia's manta rays - A New Day in Lamakera Manta rays are safe inside Misool Eco Resort's No-Take Zone, but oceanic mantas roam far. That's why Misool Eco Resort's charitable foundation, Misool Baseftin, has started a manta conservation project in Lamakera, a small village in central Indonesia. It's estimated that this tiny village could be responsible for up to one-third of the global manta kill. It's now illegal to hunt or trade in Manta Rays in Indonesia. Together with WildAid, Reef Check Indonesia, and the Indonesian Manta Project, the Lamakera manta conservation project is working hard to transition this community to sustainable fisheries, tourism, and manta research. http://www.thesevenseas.net//A_New_Day_in_Lamkera-Project_

"Indonesia is the worlds largest exporter of sharks and rays, accounting for 15% of world trade. But manta fisheries are largely unregulated in Indonesia, and actual harvests are likely to be far greater than reported figures. Meanwhile local manta populations are declining." Manta Watch Indonesia http://mantawatch.com//2/12/save-manta-rays-in-indonesia/

Manta Memories -- Save manta rays by helping people http://www.mantamemories.org/

http://aplus.com/a/unbelievable-footage-captures-human-help

Check out this interview I did through Scuba Path that discusses how to get involved in conservation through volunteering. http://www.scubapath.com//episode-6-dan-smith-gaining-exp/

Happy World Turtle Day!