![]() Janneman Conradie, MMF pilot and field researcher, was surprised the first time he saw a reef manta ray during an aerial transect at the Sardine Run, which takes place every year along the Wild Coast of South Africa’s Eastern Cape Province. "Although we are just beginning to brush the surface of these movements, these findings are a huge step forward in helping us to inform the management and conservation of the species within southern Africa." Potential nursery habitat detected from the air " Seasonality of mantas at Zavora and limited connectivity to Tofo has always suggested southern movements," said Cullain. Nakia Cullain, a PhD student at Dalhousie University and manager of MMF’s southernmost field station in Zavora, was not surprised to learn that these animals have connectivity to South Africa. Stephanie Venables, who also completed her PhD thesis on the Mozambican manta ray population, noted that " These cross-border movements are an important finding, as they demonstrate the need for cooperative species management between the neighboring countries." A critical part of the team’s focus is to better understand where and how far this species moves in order to guide effective management solutions.ĭr. Our previous work has found a steep decline in manta ray sightings over the past two decades, highlighting it as an at-risk population. MMF’s manta ray research program in Mozambique has been monitoring the southern Mozambican population for over 20 years, making it one of the longest and most comprehensive manta ray studies globally. We are thrilled to have finally confirmed this for the first time through rigorous, long-term research efforts along the southeastern coast of Africa." ![]() ![]() Andrea Marshall, one of MMF's principal scientists who oversaw the project, shared her excitement about the findings, saying, " As highly mobile species, reef manta rays are capable of long-range movements, so it was only a matter of time until we documented international exchange between the waters of adjacent countries. Citizen science contributions combined with opportunistic fieldwork in South Africa, resulted in the extension of the species’ southern range by approximately 140 km to Mdumbi Beach and has provided the first confirmed international movement records for the species, highlighting gaps in knowledge to encourage more focused research on manta rays along the east coast of Africa.ĭr. New research by the Marine Megafauna Foundation has extended the southern range of the reef manta ray ( Mobula alfredi) in Africa, connecting the longest monitored and highly vulnerable population of reef manta rays in southern Mozambique to the UNESCO World Heritage site of iSimangaliso in South Africa. ![]()
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