Manta rays and other rays are sentient marine animals facing significant threats from fishing and habitat loss.
Manta rays are among the most cognitively complex fish known. Their large brains and documented social behavior, including apparent curiosity toward divers and responses to mirrors consistent with self-recognition, place them in a category of fish welfare concern that is rarely acknowledged. They are targeted for gill plate harvest for traditional medicine markets — a trade that is driving population declines in multiple species. Wildlife tourism centered on manta rays generates far more economic value than their harvest and provides an economic alternative to fishing.