Researchers have discovered a feeding aggregation of reef manta rays in South Africa's iSimangaliso Wetland Park. The UNESCO World Heritage Site is already a protected sanctuary, giving hope for the threatened species.
Have you ever been far from home and bumped into someone you knew, thinking “Fancy seeing you here – what a small world!”?
If so, you'll understand the surprise of Michelle Carpenter, a scientist at the University of Cape Town and the Marine Megafauna Foundation. While swimming with reef mantas in South Africa, she recognised individuals she had previously 'met' in Závora, Mozambique – hundreds of miles away – four years earlier.
Carpenter worked with Závora’s head researcher Nakia Cullain and Ryan Daly from the Oceanographic Research Institute to find out more about these enigmatic rays.
They used the unique spot patterns on the manta rays’ bellies to identify individuals and learn about the species’ distribution.
The data they gathered reveals that iSimangaliso is a critical habitat for threatened reef mantas. Their paper – the first study to determine South African aggregation sites of both reef (Mobula alfredi) and oceanic (Mobula birostris) manta rays – has been published in the journal Environmental Biology of Fishes.
“Many of Mozambique’s reef mantas are thriving in a sanctuary in South Africa,” says Carpenter. The park is already protected from both fishing and tourism. “It already has the best kind of protection possible,” she says.
“As soon as they leave this zone, they are threatened," she adds. Two of the rays made return trips between Závora, Mozambique, and the iSimangaliso Wetland Park: “a straight-line distance of approximately 870 km [540 miles]”, according to the study.
The researchers also extended the known distribution range for reef mantas in Africa by 500 km south, from Mdumbi Beach to Port Ngqura, Eastern Cape. “Port Ngqura may be at least one seasonal nursery area in southern Africa, during summer; however, further robust, long-term research is needed to identify confirmed nurseries for [reef and oceanic mantas] in South Africa,” the study says.
Being highly mobile puts southern African manta rays at risk as they're more likely to encounter human threats like shark nets.
Images and videos/Michelle Carpenter, University of Cape Town and Marine Megafauna Foundation
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