Manta rays are the world’s largest rays. There are currently two recognised species, the reef manta ray (Manta alfredi) and the giant oceanic manta ray (Manta birostris), reaching wingspans of 5 and 7m respectively. These iconic species are harmless giants of the oceans. They attract considerable public interest and are the subject of globally important ecotourism industries. They are also targeted for fisheries in various parts of the world and as a consequence are listed as Vulnerable to Extinction in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Project manta
Project Manta is a multidisciplinary study of manta rays, established in 2007, that aims to provide much needed biological and ecological information about the species in eastern Australia.
The Project Manta team visit Lady Elliot Island on the Great Barrier Reef several times a year. On these expeditions the team will conduct research which includes photographing, observing and recording manta ray behaviour. In the lab, they identify individual rays from photographs and enter the results in the database. They also collect samples of water and plankton and take oceanographic measurements of water currents, conductivity, temperature, and depth.
CITIZEN SCIENCE
Photo-identification (photo-ID) is one of the key methods used in the Manta research since individual manta rays can be differentiated by their distinctive ventral markings, comparable to human finger-prints. ‘Citizen Science’ is a major component of Project Manta for photo-ID data collection. Professional and recreational divers provide photographs and sighting information of manta rays along the entire east Australian coast.
Learn more at the Project Manta website
at facebook