Giant mantas spotted off Karachi after six years

Although not directly targeted by fishing activities in Pakistan, giant mantas get entangled in gillnet fisheries

KARACHI:

Two giant manta rays, species that are a relative of the shark and stingray, were videoed swimming along the vessel captained by Samad Bilwani and shared by Zahid Maker, a member of Board of Director of WWF-Pakistan, in the southwest of Karachi in the Arabian Sea on Saturday

This species, recently declared endangered by the IUCN and added to the IUCN red list, was known to commonly occur in Pakistan, but was now becoming extremely rare, a WWF-Pakistan statement said on Sunday.

According to the statement, the last sighting of the giant manta, scientifically known as Mobula birostris, was in the offshore waters north of Churna Island in October 2016.

Although not directly targeted by fishing activities in Pakistan, a large number of the giant mantas get entangled in gillnet fisheries. However, their numbers declined over the last 20 years.

"These two giant mantas were spotted in the offshore waters 50 nautical miles south of Karachi. It is extremely rare to see two giant manta rays together," the statement said.

Read: Safeguarding wildlife

According to Zahid Maker, it is amazing that these gentle giants encircled the boat, coming to the surface and swimming along the boat, presenting an amazing sight to behold. In many countries like Maldives, Thailand, Costa Rica, Fiji and Mozambique, recreational dives are arranged to allow swimming with giant mantas.

According to Rab Nawaz, Senior Director Conservation Biodiversity, WWF-Pakistan, mantas and mobulas are an important part of the marine ecosystem of Pakistan.