KOTA KINABALU: Divers at the Pom Pom Island off Semporna were treated to a rare sight – giant oceanic manta rays swimming very close to the surface.
The elusive rays, which were first spotted last Sunday about 400m from Pom Pom Island, are believed to have been roaming the area for about two weeks, said Jeethvendra Kirishnamoorthie, science officer at the Tropical Research And Conservation Centre (TRACC).
“It is rare for us here in TRACC to see this marine species. I believe they were following a food trail, consuming plankton, which in recent weeks had concentrated around the waters of Semporna. Such plankton aggregations also attract other filter feeders like whale sharks,” he said yesterday.
Within the same week, divers carrying out a leisure dive off South Pom Pom Island encountered a giant manta ray performing its signature barrel roll, a behaviour used to capture concentrated plankton, he added.
“After several rolls, it descended into deeper waters and we parted ways due to scuba depth limits,” said Jeethvendra.
Giant manta rays can be found aggregating in shallow waters of less than 10m during feeding. They often move inshore during the day to socialise in shallow waters. At night, they feed at depths of up 400m and can even dive to 1,000m.
Jeethvendra said although the species was protected in Malaysia, illegal harvesting still occurred.
During the same period, many artisanal fishermen were seen with spears, potentially targeting this majestic megafauna, he said.
Megafauna refers to large organisms weighing 50kg or more, and is commonly used in the field of paleoecology and deep-sea biology to describe the largest body size class of organisms associated with the seafloor.
In Malaysia, the species is protected under the Federal Fisheries (Control of Endangered Species of Fish) Regulations 1999, as part of the Fisheries Act 1985.
Jeethvendra said the current population trend was decreasing and severely fragmented.
