There’s only one place on Earth where reef manta rays are truly thriving. A new study finds that this manta haven is even more special — and threatened — than previously thought.
Targeted for their gill plates and trapped accidentally in fishing nets, reef manta rays are in trouble; their populations around the world are plummeting. But in one protected area off the coast of Indonesia, the rays are not only bucking worldwide trends – they’re thriving.
A new technique for measuring manta rays could offer critical insights into their health, reproductive status, lifespans and whether a population is growing or shrinking.
Conservation News spoke to a manta ray expert at Conservation International about the findings of his new research — from promising pregnancies to drone discoveries to acrobatic feeding behaviors.
Conservation News spoke with Conservation International's Mark Erdmann about his job as a marine biologist, where he spends almost as much time underwater discovering new species as he does helping communities above ground conserve them.