#OCEAN MANTA RAY DRIVERS#

Simon is also an avid underwater photographer and loves to try and convey the beauty of the natural world and the conservation issues it faces through his photography.

He has been working with the Manta Trust for three years, starting as a volunteer, then taking over as research officer for the MMRP, and is now leading the Maldives Oceanic Manta Ray Project. Upon graduating, Simon continued to work with whale sharks, this time in the Philippines, before swapping over to study manta rays in the Maldives. His Masters dissertation focused on whale shark seasonality in Mexico. Browse 2,661 manta rays stock photos and images available, or search for manta rays hawaii or maldives manta rays to find more great stock photos and pictures. Simon took up scuba diving and carried that passion through to work as a scuba instructor for a time in Australia, Cyprus and Honduras.Д®nrolling at the University of Southampton in the UK, Simon studied marine biology. His passion for the ocean stems from watching his parents scuba dive in Sri Lanka whilst he floated above on his body board. The underwater world has always fascinated Simon from a young age.

However, at present we have no knowledge of the extent, if any, of the connectivity between these populations.ДЇind out more about this population by reading the 2019 summary report here. The relatively close distance (1,000 km) between the aggregation sites in the south of the Maldives and the extensive fishery in Sri Lanka is a cause for concern, especially as the Sri Lankan fleet fishes intensively throughout this region of the Indian Ocean. In the summer of 1999, the manta rays essentially abandoned the Kona Surf. During daylight hours, the dive site is called Garden Eel Cove. ItвЂ™s offshore of the Kona International Airport. Fisheries research studies conducted by the Manta Trust in Sri Lanka have estimated that thousands of these threatened rays are landed every year across the country. The dive site Manta Heaven is located in Makako Bay that is just around the corner of Keahole Point, the most western tip of the Big Island.

Sri Lanka, which is situated 300 kilometres to the north of the Maldives, is home to one of the largest manta and devil ray fisheries in the world.

#OCEAN MANTA RAY DRIVERS#

Large aggregations have been recorded in a number of years, but continued observations are needed to confirm the timing and drivers of these aggregations. The population appears to be highly transient with individuals spending only short periods of time close to the reef, and rarely being re-sighted. We have identified over 830 individuals, most of which have come from Fuvahmulah Atoll. However, only in the last couple of years has a large population of this species been identified in the southernmost region of the archipelago attracting more in-depth studies.Д«y collecting in-water photo identification images of the underside (ventral surface) of the manta rays, we have built up an ID database of oceanic mantas in the Maldives. Sightings data on oceanic manta rays ( Mobula birostris) has been collected in the Maldives since the beginning of the Maldivian Manta Ray Project in 2005.

Ocean manta ray