![]() In a victory for the future of this species, the National Marine Fisheries Service announced their decision in 2018 to officially list the species as threatened. With indications that population numbers were dwindling, combined with their low reproductive rate, Defenders of Wildlife submitted a petition in 2015 to the National Marine Fisheries Service to protect the giant manta ray under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The potential for threats to cause cascading declines in the giant manta ray species is incredibly high - a single manta ray only gives birth to a one offspring every two to three years. When industrial fishing boats drag nets behind them to indiscriminately capture fish, animals like giant manta rays can easily become entangled and die. This commercial demand has combined with bycatch mortality from ocean fisheries. False claims that giant manta ray gills plates detoxify human blood have created a booming market, where sellers can earn up to $300 a pound for gill plates. As a result, the coral reef systems, where these rays gather to feast on masses of plankton and reproduce, are disappearing. ![]() Increasing CO2 quantities and temperature levels are changing the chemistry of the ocean. In fact, we are the ones threatening them with climate change, unsustainable fishing for their gill plates and habitat loss. The giant manta ray’s massive size may seem frightening but as gentle filter feeders they pose little threat to us.
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