Manta Rays Ecuador
Isla de la Plata, Ecuador
Key Objective:
The study of a population of giant manta rays, Manta birostris known to frequent Isla de la Plata in coastal Ecuador. During 2011 we will continue working on our successful ID work of 2009/10 and also attempting to bring greater meaning to our plankton findings of last year. We will also look farther afield from our study site to see if the population might be more widespread.
Why this is important:
Manta birostris has only recently been classified as a separate species of giant manta ray. It is crucial to obtain as much information from locations around the world as possible in order to draw up effective conservation and management policies for this species.
Background
For the 2011 season we want to expand on our successful ID work of the last two years and try to find answers to some of the questions raised during our baseline study. ID work is the key to understanding this population and in 2011 we have a larger team of divers to volunteer for the Project, so allowing us to carry out more thorough in-water observations at multiple sites. We aim to expand our network of contacts along the Ecuadorean coastline to find out other areas where mantas are frequenting. We confirmed in 2010 a cleaning station used some 65 miles from our main study site, and so there could be an entire network of sites along the coastline not protected in any way whatsoever. Our ID work will also concentrate this year on population maturity. With a high number of males in the database, we can get a fair idea of the number of mature versus immature individuals and what the recruitment rate might be.
In 2010 we carried out a basic plankton study. Although merely intended to throw up suggestions as to what might be happening during sporadic manta visits, the results were nonetheless interesting, and so in 2011 a more in-depth plankton study will be carried out to see if those suggestions can be borne out via more thorough sampling.
When Andrea Marshall visited our project in 2010 and placed three tags on our mantas, one of the tagged individuals travelled south to Peru. The beeline the tag made for the coast, directly to a pier, suggested that that manta might have been killed. The project will visit Peru to ascertain whether that could have been a possibility, and to look at the general state of fishing activity in the region. More tags will be placed this year by Andrea to see if any more migratory patterns will be revealed.
Aims and Objectives
- Continuation of successful baseline study of local population of manta birostris in Isla de la Plata, Ecuador.
- Measuring plankton type, presence and densities as well as accurate current data in the study area.
- Continuation of Identification work in the study area
- Assisting Andrea Marshall with her worldwide study of the manta birostris migration patterns.
Humboldt Giant Mantas Exceed Expectations
— Mark Harding, 03 January, 2012
Of any project, the field work is where the foundations are laid for successful data processing. Processing that data is maybe not as action packed as collecting it, but it is equally as engaging and fascinating. It is here, in…
The Problem with Migration
— Mark Harding, 17 November, 2011
Our planet used to be a more migratory place than it is today. Sadly some of the greatest land migrations no longer occur due routes being occupied by farms or cities or criss crossed by highways. Some terrestrial migrations still…
All things Great and Small
— Mark Harding, 18 October, 2011
Our research this season involved a closer look at plankton. We have on occasion witnessed some heightened activity in our research area, and last season we made some daily surface plankton trawls to see if at least one of these…
Paradise Lost?
— Mark Harding, 21 September, 2011
We have drawn another manta field season in Ecuador to a close. This year proved to be another incredible migration event, albeit after a late start, and whatever we lacked in action in July, the mantas certainly made up for…
A View To A Thrill
— Mark Harding, 31 August, 2011
Until August arrived the manta season had started fairly bleak. Mantas can be found in these waters normally from early June. For the first time since I had started my work here, I had managed to secure enough funding to…