The Need for Manta Ray Protection

Fishing Pressure:

• In Indonesia, Mexico, and the Philippines mass fisheries seriously threaten manta populations.
• New demand from Asia for dried manta gill rakers used in traditional medicines has dramatically increased the Indonesian fishery, threatening the local population.
• Skin, meat, and gill rakers of a mature manta in Indonesia sell for a total of $160.

Kona's Mantas:

• Manta rays are a beautiful, charismatic animal that deserves protection from humans.
• Kona's manta population is very small and closed, ie there appears to be no immigration.
• Fishing pressure of the Kona rays would easily wipe out the local population.
• Kona's mantas have been studied since 1991, providing the longest and most complete record of manta rays anywhere in the world
• Kona's mantas support an eco-tourism industry worth $2.5 million annually.
• This is a pro-active measure to protect manta rays in the Hawaiian waters.
• There is no immediate fishing threat to the mantas in Hawaii.
  

About Manta Rays (Manta birostris):

• Elasmobranch (sharks, skates, and rays) with cartilaginous skeleton
• Largest ray in the ocean, reaching wingspans up to 22 feet across.
• Found in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide
• Defenseless, no sharp teeth and no tail spines.
• Filter feeders that feed on small organisms such as plankton.
• Give birth to live young.
• Lowest reproductive rates for elasmobranchs, one pup every one to three years at best.

Manta rays (Manta birostris) are large, beautiful sea creatures that live in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. Cousins to sharks, manta rays have cartilaginous skeletons that make for their graceful flexibility. Manta rays are the largest ray in the ocean, reaching wingspans up to 22 feet across. Manta rays are filter feeders and feed on small organisms such as plankton and fish. They have no sharp teeth and no tail stingers. Manta rays have one of the lowest birthrates of any elasmobranch (sharks, skates, and rays), as they are slow to attain sexual maturity. Females have only one pup every one to three years. mass fisheries seriously threaten manta ray populations. Strong fishing pressures by humans in other elasmobranchs with low reproductive rates have resulted in collapse of their populations. There is no scientific basis for why manta ray survival would be any better.

Although there is no immediate fishing threat to the mantas in Hawaii, Manta Pacific Research Foundation is taking a pro-active role in implementing a No Kill, No Extraction law for the Hawaiian waters. Foundation board members and supporters met with the West Hawaii Fisheries Council December 18, 2003 to suggest protective status for the manta rays in Hawaiian waters and received unanimous support for the idea. The Foundation is now taking the next step and asking the Hawaii state legislature to enact a law to protect manta rays.

In Mexico, Indonesia, and the Philippines, mantas have been traditionally hunted for consumption of the meat, either fresh or dried. However, a market has recently developed in Asia for dried gill rakers. The gill rakers are ground to a powder and used in traditional medicines. This market has lead to an increase in the Indonesian fishery and threatens the manta populations in Indonesia (Dewar, 2002). In the local Hawaiian waters, if mantas were exploited for fisheries or extracted in any way, the population would easily be driven to extinction due to the small population size, their low reproductive rate and limited dispersal. Sighting data along the Kona coast suggests that the population is relatively small--about 40 mantas re-sighted on a yearly basis, and only 91 mantas identified over the last 14 years of research. Only one pregnant female has been seen in the last 14 years of sightings along the Kona coast. This suggests that the Kona mantas have very low reproductive rates. Manta tracking data (Clark, unpublished data) suggests that the local population is a closed population, with no migration into or out of the Kona Coast. Fishing for mantas in Kona would decimate the local population. "We would lose something very special and would most likely not get the mantas back in our lifetime," observes Keller Laros, co-founder of Manta Pacific Research Foundation.

Manta Pacific Research Foundation conducted a survey of dive operators on the Kona Coast to determine the economic value of mantas in Kona. The Foundation hopes to show the manta fishing industry that a live manta is worth more than a dead one. A manta population can support and sustain an eco-tourism industry worth millions annually, while a manta fishery creates lesser revenue and can lead to the extinction of local populations. Based on spending trends of tourists in Hawaii, over $2.5 million in revenues were generated on the big island of Hawaii in 2002 from manta eco-tourism. In contrast, a single manta in Indonesia sells for approximately $160 for the meat, skin, and gill rakers (Dewar, 2002). Eco-tourism generates far more income for a local population then would a fished manta ray.

Manta Pacific Research Foundation's mission is to study manta rays in their natural habitat, conduct scientific research, provide education programs for the public about manta rays and the marine environment, and to establish and promote manta ray conservation. For more information, go to www.mantapacific.org, or write to Manta Pacific Research Foundation, P.O. Box 3227 Kailua-Kona, HI 96745-3227. Manta Pacific Research Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization.

There is no residency requirement or minimum age to show your support for manta rays.