"I identified 27 young males and estimate that a further 29 were juvenile females. "I noticed that many of the rays were really young-they were small, and I could see juvenile males with immature sexual organs," says Knochel. The ability of these animals to undertake long-distance movements over deep water means that multinational cooperation will be required to protect them effectively. Movements were recorded for 21 rays sighted in more than one location, including basin-spanning migrations from one side of the Red Sea to the other. The team identified 267 individuals from 395 sightings in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Jordan and Israel, from 2004 to 2021. "I spent weeks analyzing photographs to identify as many individuals as I could."Ĭredit: King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
"Like whale sharks, manta rays have unique spot patterns on their bodies this, together with size estimates gleaned from photographs, meant that individuals could be identified," says Knochel. These online images doubled the amount of data for the project. They then reached out to members of the public who had posted photographs of rays taken in the Red Sea region on various social media platforms. They contacted Elke Bojanowski, a marine scientist and divemaster in Egypt, who granted access to her image archives. Knochel and colleagues began by collating images and details of sightings they had witnessed. I realized we could tap into social media for help."
GIANT OCEANIC MANTA RAY HAVE BABIES FULL
"I wanted to learn more about the Red Sea manta population, but a full scientific survey would be challenging and expensive. "There are so many unknowns about these charismatic creatures," says Anna Knochel, a former Masters student at KAUST who led the project under the supervision of Michael Berumen.
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