Manta rays are large, long-lived cartilaginous fish with complex behavior and significant welfare needs. They face threats from fisheries bycatch, gill raker trade, and marine plastic pollution.
Manta rays are among the most cognitively sophisticated fish, exhibiting behaviors that suggest rich inner lives by the standards applicable to any animal. Their intelligence and apparent social sensitivity makes welfare harm particularly salient — the terror of net entanglement or the distress of air exposure during deck handling represents suffering with a potential cognitive dimension beyond simple nociception. The gill raker trade drives targeted killing of animals that travel slowly, surface frequently, and are predictably found at cleaning stations, making them highly vulnerable. Each manta killed represents decades of potential life — rays live 40+ years — eliminated for products with no proven therapeutic value.