Manta: Secret Life of Devil Rays

Born into a life of perpetual motion, manta rays must keep swimming to survive. Driven forward by powerful beats of their wing-like pectoral fins, they search the ocean currents for concentrated patches of the tiny planktonic organisms on which they feed. They are giants of their kind, ranging throughout the world's tropical and subtropical oceans, where their horn-like cephalic (head) fins gave rise to ancient mariners' tales of fearsome ̀devil fish' that dragged boats into the ocean depths. Today we know that these gentle giants are harmless to humans, but much else about their lives remains a mystery. Fundamental questions, such as how long they live and their reproductive cycles and fecundity, have yet to be answered satisfactorily. Areas of key habitat use, migration corridors and population estimates, both nationally and internationally, must also be clearly defined if we are to make the informed and educated decisions needed to protect effectively these animals and the world they inhabit.