Indonesia on Friday became home to the world's biggest manta ray
sanctuary covering millions of square kilometres, as it seeks to
protect the huge winged fish and draw more tourists to the
sprawling archipelago.
New legislation gives full protection to the creatures across all
the waters surrounding Southeast Asia's biggest country, which for
years has been the world's largest shark and ray fishery.
Protection group Conservation International hailed the "bold" move
and said it was influenced by a recent government-backed review
that showed a single manta ray was worth one million dollars in
tourism revenue over its lifetime.
This compares to between $40 and $500 if caught and killed, the
group said.
Many foreign tourists come to Indonesia every year to dive in some
of the world's most biodiverse waters and manta rays are a
favourite sight.
The gentle beasts have wingspans up to 25 feet (7.5 metres), which
they flap to propel themselves gracefully through the water.
"Indonesia now has the second-largest manta ray tourism industry in
the world, with an estimated annual turnover of $15 million," said
Agus Dermawan, a senior official from the ministry of marine
affairs and fisheries.
"Given the huge area of reefs and islands in our country, if
managed properly, Indonesia could become the top manta tourism
destination on the planet."
Indonesia is one of the few places in the world where tourists can
easily see both species of manta rays, the oceanic and reef
varieties. The new legislation protects both.
Taking tourists out to view rays and other creatures provides
livelihoods for many people working in popular dive spots across
Indonesia, such as Raja Ampat off the northwest tip of New Guinea
island and around the resort island of Bali.
In recent years their numbers of rays have declined rapidly,
however, due to voracious demand in China for their body parts for
use in traditional medicine.
The new legislation protects manta rays within Indonesia's 5.8
million square kilometres (2.2 million square miles) of ocean,
banning fishing of the rays and their export.
It came a year after the local government in Raja Ampat announced
the creation of a 46,000-square-kilometre shark and ray
sanctuary.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies both
species of manta ray as vulnerable.
