Part 1: Too hot, too fresh… rayning rays!

When we kicked off our Fall field work to tag young whitespotted eagle rays along Florida’s Atlantic Coast (Indian River Lagoon) on August 1st, 2023, nature seemed to be against us: the water was too hot (34 degrees Celsius) or too fresh (below 21.21 parts per thousand). There were no recent sightings of eagle ray pups in the area and our nets were often covered in macroalgae. Despite these changes we stayed hopeful and went out in the field from August-October, rain or shine. We had boats, trucks and personnel scheduled to track eagle rays for 24 hours (17 days, 115 sets, 3450 hours of fishing; 2 boats, 2 trucks, 4 shifts of crew scheduled 17 times and no rays). But in science, as in life, things don’t always go as planned.

Fieldwork not always with rays of sunshine. All research conducted under Florida State Permit FWC-SAL-23-1140. Photo © Fisheries Ecology and Conservation Lab

Meanwhile, along the gulf Coast of Florida, on September 26, 2023, it felt like Christmas morning, it was rayning rays! We were seeing eagle ray pups everywhere. We caught eight little rays in one epic haul facilitated by the Marine Operations Staff and former Mote Captain Pete Hull. These pups were tagged in collaboration with Senior Scientist Kim Bassos-Hull and three were actively tracked for up to 24 hours in one week! We went out again the first week of October and tagged two other pups in Sarasota Bay! Thus far we have been able to actively track 5 young eagle rays in Sarasota Bay. We also tagged 15 eagle rays with coded tags to study their long-term movements for up to two years.

Project leader Ariadna Rojas Corzo and Senior Scientist Kim Bassos-Hull with eagle rays captured in Sarasota Bay, Florida September 26th, 2023. All research conducted under Florida State Permit FWC-SAL-23-1140. Photo © Anna Knochel | Fisheries Ecology and Conservation Lab

Project leader Ariadna Rojas Corzo and research colleagues Anna Knochel, Savannah Ryburn, and Salome Jaramillo with eagle rays captured in Sarasota Bay, Florida September 26th, 2023. All research conducted under Florida State Permit FWC-SAL-23-1140. Photo © Fisheries Ecology and Conservation Lab.

Curious to know what little eagle rays do? Stay tuned for more updates! These tags are currently providing information about their movements and the extent of this nursery area.

Project leader Ariadna Rojas Corzo tracking whitespotted eagle ray tagged in Sarasota Bay with Breanna DeGroot and TJ Ostendorf. All research conducted under Florida State Permit FWC-SAL-23-1140. Photo © Changing Seas South Florida PBS.

Project leader Ariadna Rojas Corzo with eagle rays captured in Sarasota Bay, Florida September 26th, 2023. All research conducted under Florida State Permit FWC-SAL-23-1140. Photo © Anna Knochel | Fisheries Ecology and Conservation Lab.

•       Thank you to Save Our Seas Foundation for supporting this research and everyone in my lab @fishecohboi for making this possible. Special thanks to my colleagues at Mote Marine Lab: Kim Bassos-Hull, Krystan Wilkinson, Pete Hull, Dean Dougherty, Greg Byrd, Cody Cole and Val Hagan for their help with active tracking. A Huge Thank you also goes to Jimmy Nelson the Marina Officer at Harbor Branch and research colleagues: Elizabeth McCabe, Anna Knochel, Savannah Ryburn, Salome Jaramillo for their support and field assistance.