December 2018

We want to introduce you to the passionate people around the world that make up the Manta Team. For our latest edition, we’re featuring the fantastic Stefany Rojas, who heads-up the Peru Mobulid Project.

Tell us about your first manta ray encounter.

"In 2012, I was finishing college and started working on a project to evaluate fisheries in coastal communities in northern Peru at a local NGO. My role was to identify the different species of mantas and devil rays that were captured in Peru, because their meat is consumed a lot in traditional dishes such as "tortilla de raya". As you can imagine, it was not a very nice way to meet these great creatures, but it was what prompted me to want to work for their conservation in my country.

In 2014 I travelled to Mexico to visit the Yelapa mantas project with Dr. Josh Stewart, and at the same time, train myself in the data collection whilst onboard. I was very excited because it was going to be my first encounter with a LIVE manta, but luck was not on my side in this trip; I returned to Peru without seeing them, but with a lot of new-found knowledge to help me replicate this work in my country. A few months later I participated in a boat trip in Zorritos (northern Peru), and it was there that I finally saw my first oceanic manta ray ALIVE for the first time. The emotion I felt is indescribable, and at the time the only thing I kept repeating to myself was that I would fight to the end for their protection.”

How did you get involved in the Peru Mobulid Project?

“I worked for four years on mobulid conservation projects until national protection for oceanic manta rays was achieved in Peru in 2015. The next year, I decided to apply for the Manta Trust volunteer program in the Maldives, and this was one of the most enriching experiences of my professional life. I learned a lot about mantas with the MMRP, and my passion for them took-off! I realised that there is so much we still don’t know about these giants, and that to continue investigating them and taking care of them was something I wanted to dedicate myself to. I enjoyed three months in the Maldivian paradise, and I returned to my country full of energy and motivation. In 2017, Manta Trust trusted me to become the Project Leader of the Peru Mobulid Project.”

What is the most surprising thing you have learnt about manta rays?

Stefany (right) runs community education and outreach programmes with several coastal communities in Peru.

“What amazes me most about manta rays is that although they are a large size, they feed on the smallest things that exist in the ocean, the plankton…that they are totally harmless and at the same time vulnerable to different types of fisheries.”

What is the most challenging part of your work?

“The most challenging part of my work is to bring together all the key players under the same objective: to care for and conserve the existing mobulid species in Peru. There are three groups of key stakeholders that my work revolves around:

The government. It is necessary to continue training government representatives to improve the standard of data collection and to encourage them to create effective management measures for these species.
The fishermen. It is necessary to make them understand that the capture of these species is not sustainable and that ultimately, fishing communities will be most affected by the depletion of important marine species.
The local community. Which consumes mobulid meat in traditional dishes.”

An oceanic manta ray (Mobula birostris) in the waters of Peru. Photo by Shawn Heinrichs. — **An oceanic manta ray (*Mobula birostris*) in the waters of Peru***. Photo by Shawn Heinrichs.*

What legacy would you like to leave in your field of research?

“For all Peruvians, especially those from coastal communities, to know what manta rays are, that they exist in our country, and that they are protected at the national level. That it is not necessary to travel thousands of kilometers to see them and enjoy them. Many countries make large amounts of money through ecotourism with manta rays; this reality is not far from being fulfilled in Peru, but it is necessary to educate all those involved before this happens so that it will be carried out in a responsible manner.

The important thing about my work is that manta and devil rays are already positioned on the map, and more and more people are paying attention and continue to investigate more about this group of fish.”

If you could ask people to do one thing to help - what would it be?

“Let us all look at the ocean and give it the importance it deserves. Being a generator of life on our planet, I think it is important to be empathetic with the ocean and act responsibly. Also, that they get involved in the different conservation projects that exist in the world. Getting funding for research is very difficult nowadays, so if you have the opportunity to support important scientific research, do it! That way you can help to solve more mysteries.”