Sightings trends and behaviour of manta rays in Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, Brazil

Bucair, Nayara; Venables, Stephanie K.; Balboni, Ana Paula; Marshall, Andrea D.

doi:10.1186/s41200-021-00204-w

Cited by 14 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 67 publications

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“…It is unclear if this is due to reduced water clarity, rarity of use, or very low levels of survey effort. Manta rays have been reported in bays and inlets in Brazil 29 , 60 , and we verified several anecdotal reports of use of shallow tropical bays in the U.S. Caribbean. Future efforts will seek to evaluate EUS nearshore sightings relative to currents, tidal phase, and salinity.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…A putative species or subspecies of the giant manta ray has been suggested (referred to as M. cf. birostris 9 , 27 ) to occur off southeastern Florida 26 , FGBNMS 25 , the Yucatan peninsula 28 , Brazil 29 , and the Caribbean (N. Pelletier, unpublished data). Given the lack of easily recognized visually distinguishing characteristics, our analysis of manta ray distributions in the EUS should be considered inclusive of M. cf.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The distribution of manta rays in the western North Atlantic Ocean off the eastern United States

Farmer

Garrison

Horn

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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In 2018, the giant manta ray was listed as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. We integrated decades of sightings and survey effort data from multiple sources in a comprehensive species distribution modeling (SDM) framework to evaluate the distribution of giant manta rays off the eastern United States, including the Gulf of Mexico. Manta rays were most commonly detected at productive nearshore and shelf-edge upwelling zones at surface thermal frontal boundaries within a temperature range of approximately 20–30 °C. SDMs predicted highest nearshore occurrence off northeastern Florida during April, with the distribution extending northward along the shelf-edge as temperatures warm, leading to higher occurrences north of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina from June to October, and then south of Savannah, Georgia from November to March as temperatures cool. In the Gulf of Mexico, the highest nearshore occurrence was predicted around the Mississippi River delta from April to June and again from October to November. SDM predictions will allow resource managers to more effectively protect manta rays from fisheries bycatch, boat strikes, oil and gas activities, contaminants and pollutants, and other threats.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The distribution of manta rays in the western North Atlantic Ocean off the eastern United States

Farmer

Garrison

Horn

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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“…To obtain a more insightful assessment of female M. birostris demographics for this study, life stages were classified based on size estimation: juvenile (wingspan less than 4 m), adult (wingspan greater than 4 m), and unknown. Direct measurements were not possible, so female maturation status was estimated from the photos and videos where associated fish species, such as remoras, or humans were present within the frame and could be used as a size reference (Bucair et al, 2021). Where these associations were not present, the status of the female was left as unknown.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Crowdsourced data reveal multinational connectivity, population demographics, and possible nursery ground of endangered oceanic manta rays in the Red Sea

Knochel

Cochran

Kattan

et al. 2022

Aquatic Conservation

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1. Despite the large size and economic value of the species, populations of oceanic manta ray (Mobula birostris) are often poorly studied and almost completely undescribed in the Red Sea. Here, photo-identification (photo-ID) was used to provide the first description of M. birostris movement patterns and population demographics for the northern Red Sea. 2. Images collated from social media, researchers, and photo-ID databases from 2004 to 2021 identified 267 individual M. birostris from 395 sightings in Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan. Sexual parity was observed in the population with 134 females, 111 males, and 22 individuals of undetermined sex. Nearly half of the individuals in this study were first identified through social media searches, highlighting the value of the sightings data collected by the public. 3. The regular presence of juveniles in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, indicates that this area is a potential nursery, which is the second identified for this species globally and the first in the Indo-Pacific. Encounter data from this study recorded the first known movements of juvenile M. birostris and demonstrate that they can travel long distances of at least 525 km. 4. Within the recorded population, 24.7% (n = 67) of individuals were resighted, including 21 oceanic manta rays that were encountered in more than one location. These records reveal long-distance migrations of up to 700 km and confirm the international connectivity of M. birostris in the Red Sea. The lagged identification rate data are best fitted with an open-population model, implying that the northern Red Sea is represented by one well-mixed population. 5. The baseline data presented here should encourage the expansion of directed research and citizen science initiatives for M. birostris. Increased knowledge of movement patterns and site use will be crucial to successfully protecting this

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“…cf. birostris (Walbaum, 1792) (Bucair, Venables, et al ., 2021; Hinojosa‐Alvarez et al ., 2016; Pate & Marshall, 2020; Stevens et al ., 2018), the Atlantic pygmy devil ray, Mobula hypostoma (Bancroft, 1831) (Campbell & Munroe, 1974; Cousseau & Menni, 1983; Del Moral‐Flores et al ., 2015, 2020; Ehemann et al ., 2018, 2019; Jones et al ., 2020; Last et al ., 2016; Menni & Stehmann, 2000; Stevens et al ., 2018), the spinetail devil ray Mobula mobular (Bonnaterre, 1788), Del Moral‐Flores et al ., 2015; Mas et al ., 2015; Last et al ., 2016; Ehemann et al ., 2018; Stevens et al ., 2018; Hauser‐Davis et al ., 2021), the sicklefin devil ray Mobula tarapacana (Philippi, 1892) (Childs, 1997; De Boer et al ., 2015; Del Moral‐Flores et al ., 2015; Ehemann et al ., 2018; Last et al ., 2016; Stevens et al ., 2018) and the bentfin devil ray, Mobula thurstoni (Lloyd 1908) (Del Moral‐Flores et al ., 2015; Ehemann et al ., 2018; Gadig et al ., 2003; Last et al ., 2016; Mas et al ., 2015; Mendonça et al ., 2012, 2018; Stevens et al ., 2018). Nonetheless, reports are generally scarce, and species within this family are commonly misidentified because of taxonomic uncertainties (Stevens et al ., 2018; Stewart, Jaine, et al ., 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Manta and devil ray species occurrence and distribution in Venezuela, assessed through fishery landings and citizen science data

Ehemann

Acosta-Rodríguez

Tagliafico

et al. 2022

Journal of Fish Biology

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Manta and devil rays (collectively mobulids) belong to the monogeneric Mobulidae, which currently comprises 10 species, including a putative third manta ray species (Mobula cf. birostris). These large planktivorous rays are distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical oceans of the world. To date, six mobulid species are reported for the western Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, three of which had previously been reported in Venezuela (Mobula birostris, Mobula tarapacana and Mobula hypostoma). A preliminary assessment of fishery landings and citizen science data was conducted to further the scientific knowledge of mobulid species in Venezuela. Fisheries landing data were collected at Margarita Island between 2006 and 2007, and again in 2014. Data mining of internet search engines and social media platforms spanning the past two decades was also conducted. A total of 117 individuals of five mobulid species were recorded: Mobula sp. (n = 27), M. birostris (n = 36), M. tarapacana (n = 3), Mobula mobular (n = 26),Mobula thurstoni (n = 14) and M. cf. birostris (n = 11). The latter three species are the first confirmation of these species in Venezuela. The authors found no records of the previously reported M. hypostoma during this study. Although the occurrence of M. hypostoma in Venezuela remains possible because of the broad regional range of this species, its current presence in Venezuela is invalidated given the repeated misidentifications which have occurred in previous publications. The results of this study increase the number of reported mobulid ray species in Venezuela to five (excluding M. hypostoma). The overall data from juvenile manta rays and pregnant M. mobular and M. thurstoni recorded in this study, combined with the occurrence of all but one species of mobulid ray found in the western Atlantic Ocean, suggest Venezuela provides important habitat for this threatened family of rays.

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Sightings trends and behaviour of manta rays in Fernando de Noronha Archipelago, Brazil

Cited by 14 publications

References 67 publications

The distribution of manta rays in the western North Atlantic Ocean off the eastern United States

The distribution of manta rays in the western North Atlantic Ocean off the eastern United States

Crowdsourced data reveal multinational connectivity, population demographics, and possible nursery ground of endangered oceanic manta rays in the Red Sea

Manta and devil ray species occurrence and distribution in Venezuela, assessed through fishery landings and citizen science data

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