![]() The pair mapped out the groundwork on the back of a napkin over beers a few years later and the Manta Trust was officially formed in 2011. A need made more pressing by the fact that, at the time, no such organization existed. The result is that you can swim with manta all. Giant manta rays live in warm, tropical ocean waters and inhabit reef and coastal biomes. The combined experience of diving with hundreds of manta rays in the Maldives and then seeing the potentially devastating impacts of overfishing cemented the idea of forming an organization dedicated to studying and protecting mantas on a global scale, Peschak says. While the giant oceanic manta ray scours the seas in search of food, reef mantas remain in select locations. On average, giant manta rays live for 18 to 20 years. Paschak and Stevens next traveled to Sri Lanka, where manta rays are fished for their meat but more importantly, for their gill rakers which are used in traditional Chinese medicine. ![]() The fruits of this collaboration were published in the pages of National Geographic magazine, but the story didn’t end there. Both manta rays and stingrays are related to sharks under the cartilaginous fish group chondrichthyes, meaning their structure is built on material similar to that found in our nose and ears. Manta rays can weigh up to 3,000 pounds, with wingspans up to 20 feet.Most of these gentle giants have a much smaller average wingspan, closer to 11 feet. The abundance of mantas made this a perfect place to witness their behaviors but also see the potential threats of tourism and overfishing. Let’s face it, manta rays and stingrays look pretty similar and you can only spot the differences if you know what you’re looking for. ![]() Peschak’s introduction to manta rays began in 2008 when he accompanied scientist Guy Stevens on a trip to the Maldives, where Stevens was researching reef mantas. During the southwest monsoon season both mantas and enormous schools of baitfish feed on the microscopic riches upwelled by the trade winds that blow across the Indian Ocean every year.
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