Manta rays are beautiful and majestic animals that have a life-changing effect on people who meet them. I want to protect them so humans can experience their transformational power for generations to come! My goal is to inspire people so they take action to protect the mantas' ecosystem and oceans all around the world.
Children: the future stewards of the ocean
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While we don't take young children on our nightly manta ray moonlight swim (for several reasons, which you can read more about here), I genuinely believe including them in our love for the ocean and its inhabitants is essential. One of the things I enjoy doing is meeting with schools and classes to discuss manta rays and ocean conservation. 7th-grade students from Pleasant Hill Adventist Academy (CA), who are members of an all-girl Lego tech club, contacted us recently, so we scheduled a Zoom call. We discussed citizen science, tracking manta rays, and raising funds for conservation. Afterward, the girls designed these manta ray trackers based on existing shark tracking devices. Ingenious, isn't it? We also recently published some resources for children:
Feel free to share if you know anyone who might find these resources helpful, and contact us if you want me to visit your child's classroom virtually. I encourage all adults to do or intensify their environmental work now. This is the decade of decisions, and I continue to be motivated to leave a planet for the children that resembles much of what I've been privileged to grow up on.
P.S. Did you know we're now on (social media platform) Bluesky as well? Click here to follow Manta Ray Advocates over there! |
Martina Wing
Manta rays are beautiful and majestic animals that have a life-changing effect on people who meet them. I want to protect them so humans can experience their transformational power for generations to come! My goal is to inspire people so they take action to protect the mantas' ecosystem and oceans all around the world.
Aloha Reader, Have you ever had the feeling that everything you thought you knew about the world just went out the window? The first time that happened to manta ray enthusiasts around the world, was around 2009, when scientists confirmed there was not just one, but two species of manta rays. There were enough differences between reef mantas (Mobula alfredi) and pelagic or oceanic manta rays (Mobula birostris) to identify them as two different species. Reef mantas are the ones we see almost...
Aloha Reader, If you've been following me for a while, you know this about me: I'm not afraid to speak my truth. And with recent global and local developments, I've been looking for other avenues to share wonderful and inspiring stories of hope and engagement. One of those "other avenues" is the Ocean Wings podcast, where I invite guests to explore how nature can reconnect us to what really matters in life. The tagline, "From Manta Ray Magic to Meaningful Change," hopefully resonates with...
Aloha Reader, After 25+ years of taking people to swim with manta rays, we've heard some pretty interesting questions. Most of our guests are amazing - they come prepared, respect the ocean, and understand that we're entering the mantas' home as visitors. But sometimes, we get questions that make us stop and wonder if we live in the same reality, so today's email will be a bit punchy... Like the parents who asked to leave their young kids alone on a dark, isolated beach while they joined the...