01/08/2025
The Oceanic Manta Ray, prevalent in waters throughout the tropics, are endangered and their numbers are continuing to decrease. Their greatest threat is bycatch, being purposefully and incidentally caught in industrial fisheries. They also get entangled in discarded trawling nets, gill nets, drift nets, harpoons, longlines and shark nets.
Manta rays are keystone species. They are filter feeders so they control plankton populations (aiding in nutrient recycling), and they travel a lot throughout the ocean so they’re pretty important in the distribution of nutrients through their waste. Being a keystone species means they have a very significant impact on how ecosystems in the ocean function, and their absence can trigger cascading effects throughout the entire trophic system. Many marine habitats rely on manta rays to remain in equilibrium, like coral reefs.
I hate to say it but there’s not really much we can do as individuals. You can probably eat less fish, or eat sustainably caught fish (is there even such thing as sustainably mass caught fish? - probably not, unless you catch it yourself). Stronger laws on preventing destructive industrial fishing practices is our best bet, but the government gets too much money from it so that’s probably not gonna happen… anyway, vote green.
Charcoal on A2