Manta rays expose the weak links in ocean protection

Manta rays expose the weak links in ocean protection | Photo: Andre Kaim

Published on 5 July 2026 at 01:46 GMT

By Editorial Team SDG14

Manta ray conservation has become a test of whether ocean protection can move beyond declarations and into practical safeguards for vulnerable species. Manta rays and devil rays are slow-growing, migratory animals whose survival is threatened by fisheries, trade, habitat pressure and weak enforcement. For coastal communities, the issue is not only about charismatic wildlife. It is about whether marine economies can protect biodiversity while sustaining livelihoods, tourism and food security.

The Manta Trust, a UK-registered charity founded in 2011, works on the conservation of manta rays, devil rays and their habitats through research, education, tourism engagement and policy advocacy. Its own materials describe a global affiliate network focused on manta and devil ray research and conservation, with a stated vision of healthy oceans where these species can thrive.

The organisation’s work sits within a wider crisis for marine megafauna. Manta and devil rays, often grouped as mobulid rays, are filter-feeding relatives of sharks. They move through tropical and warm temperate seas, crossing national boundaries and depending on productive marine habitats. That mobility makes them difficult to protect through local action alone. A ray that draws tourists in one protected bay may later pass through fishing grounds, shipping routes or waters with limited monitoring.

The conservation problem is sharpened by biology. Mobulid rays generally grow slowly and produce few young, meaning depleted populations can take a long time to recover. The Convention on Migratory Species describes devil and manta rays as slow-growing, large-bodied animals, with some populations small and fragmented. Such traits make accidental capture and targeted fishing especially damaging.

The threat is not theoretical. The IUCN Red List has assessed the oceanic manta ray as Endangered, with suspected population reduction over three generations, while reef manta rays are listed as Vulnerable with a decreasing population trend. Several devil ray species have also been assessed as threatened, reflecting wider pressure on rays and sharks globally.

For the Manta Trust, science is the starting point rather than a separate activity. Long-term photo identification, population monitoring, movement studies and fisheries research can show where rays aggregate, how they move and where protection is failing. This evidence matters because marine conservation often suffers from data gaps. Without reliable information, governments may struggle to justify restrictions, design protected areas or assess whether tourism is becoming harmful.

Tourism adds both opportunity and risk. In places such as the Maldives, Indonesia, Mexico and other ray-watching destinations, manta encounters can support local employment and create incentives to keep animals alive rather than landed. But poorly managed tourism can crowd feeding or cleaning sites, disturb animals and concentrate economic benefits among a limited number of operators. Responsible wildlife tourism therefore needs codes of conduct, trained guides, visitor limits and monitoring, not only marketing images.

The public-interest question is whether ray conservation can avoid becoming a luxury concern for visitors while remaining relevant to fishing communities. Fishers may encounter manta and devil rays as bycatch rather than as a target species. Effective conservation must therefore address gear types, release practices, landing rules, compensation pressures and the economic realities of coastal work. Measures that ignore livelihoods can be resisted, under-reported or unevenly enforced.

Policy is another central battleground. Manta rays were listed on CITES Appendix II in 2013 and devil rays in 2016, requiring international trade to be shown as sustainable and not detrimental to species survival. The Manta Trust has argued that continuing population declines show the need for stronger protection and better enforcement.

Trade controls alone, however, cannot solve the problem. Rays are affected by direct catch, accidental capture, demand for body parts, coastal development, pollution and climate-linked changes in ocean conditions. Stronger international rules need to be matched by national legislation, port inspections, fisheries observer coverage, training and credible penalties. This is where the gap between treaty commitments and ocean reality is often widest.

The issue connects clearly to SDG 14 (life below water), which calls for the conservation and sustainable use of oceans and marine resources. It also touches SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production) where trade demand is involved, and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth) where tourism and fisheries shape local incomes. These links matter because manta ray conservation is not only a species issue. It is a governance test for sustainable ocean economies.

Civil society plays an important role in that governance. The Manta Trust produces research, supports local projects and contributes to policy discussions. The Convention on Migratory Species helps frame international cooperation for species that cross borders. CITES regulates trade in threatened wildlife. The IUCN Red List provides scientific assessments that influence conservation priorities. Together, these institutions cannot replace government enforcement, but they can provide evidence, pressure and accountability.

There are also limits to what non-profits can do. A charity can gather data, train communities and advocate for legal protection, but it cannot patrol every fishing ground or determine national development policy. Conservation outcomes depend on whether governments fund enforcement, whether fishing fleets comply with rules, whether consumers reject unsustainable products and whether tourism operators accept limits when profits are at stake.

The strongest case for protecting manta and devil rays is therefore practical rather than sentimental. Their decline signals wider weaknesses in marine management: inadequate fisheries data, fragmented laws, limited monitoring and insufficient protection for migratory species. Their survival depends on a chain of decisions made at sea, in ports, in tourism markets and in international negotiations.

The work of the Manta Trust shows how conservation increasingly operates in that space between science and implementation. It is not enough to prove that manta rays are threatened. The harder task is turning knowledge into rules, rules into enforcement, and enforcement into recovery. For oceans under growing pressure, that test extends far beyond one family of rays.

Further information:

* Manta Trust, this is the official source for the charity’s conservation approach, research network and work on manta and devil rays. https://www.mantatrust.org/

* Convention on Migratory Species, this source provides international context on migratory manta and devil ray conservation. https://www.cms.int/

* CITES, this institution is relevant because international wildlife trade rules affect manta and devil ray protection. https://cites.org/

* IUCN Red List, this source provides scientific conservation status assessments for threatened species, including manta and devil rays. https://www.iucnredlist.org/