ABOUT US
The Indonesian Manta Project (IMP) is the founding initiative of Thrive Conservation. Founded in 2010, IMP leads manta ray conservation throughout Indonesia by advancing scientific research, community engagement and advocacy, through local and international collaboration. We are proud to be the Indonesian affiliate of the Manta Trust, a globally-renowned charity aiming to unify manta scientists and conservationists worldwide for the protection of the species.
Our team is dedicated to understanding manta populations throughout the vast Indonesian archipelago, which is the world’s largest manta sanctuary. We work with our partners to safeguard manta rays by tackling the threats that contribute to their decline, and bolster sustainable and effective conservation methods and policy.
Our current efforts are primarily focused in two key regions of Indonesia:
01 THE BIRD’S HEAD SEASCAPE
02 THE SAVU SEA
The Bird’s Head Seascape is home to the famous Raja Ampat islands and Indonesia’s most abundant manta ray populations. Still, many areas within here are still without protection, and the increasing pressure from burgeoning tourism has started to negatively impact manta populations and their habitats.
Much less is known about manta rays in the Savu Sea, but we do know that they are some of the most threatened in Indonesia. This is a result of targeted and bycatch manta fisheries in this area, and the distinct lack of conservation efforts.
Our most recent conservation win was the designation of Heliana Island, located off Rote Island in the Rote Ndao Regency, as an Important Shark and Ray Area (ISRA). The ISRA project was first introduced by the IUCN SSC Shark Specialist Group to “identify discrete, three-dimensional portions of habitat that are critical to the survival of sharks, rays, and chimaeras around the globe, and that have the potential to be managed for conservation”. Having amassed sufficient expertise and data of oceanic manta populations here we successfully led the proposal of Heliana to be assigned ISRA status, which we hope to leverage for continued governmental attention and increased protection. Read more on our blog.
Over more than a decade of work in Indonesia, IMP has:
- Played a major role in the 2014 Indonesian national legislation, which paved the way for full protection of both reef manta rays (Mobula alfredi) and oceanic manta rays (Mobula birostris) throughout Indonesia, effectively creating the world’s largest manta sanctuary
- Advised, trained and supported local government and partners responsible for enforcing manta ray conservation management plans across Lamakera, Rote and Raja Ampat
- Reduced targeted manta fishing in Lamakera, a traditional manta hunting village located in East Flores, by up to 91.7% between December 2015 and December 2018, after the passing of the 2014 legislation
- Led alternative livelihood programs across East Flores to assist the transition of ex-manta hunters toward alternative sources of income, such as sustainable tuna trade, assistance as boat crew to support marine research and participation in a fishers cooperative
- Spearheaded manta ray surveys in some of Indonesia’s most unexplored regions, and discovered a number of previously-unknown manta ray habitats in Rote, Sumba, Cenderawasih Bay and Fakfak
- Initiated and maintained a growing database of individual manta ray IDs, containing over 2,000 reef mantas from Raja Ampat and over 30 around Rote
- Conducted satellite and acoustic tagging to uncover the behaviors and movement patterns of manta rays, including participating in a 2014-2015 satellite tagging study involving 33 manta rays which culminated in the discovery of Southeast Asia’s first manta ray nursery in Raja Ampat, as well as extensive acoustic tagging in Raja Ampat and in the Savu Sea, including Rote, Lamakera and Sumba
- Supported the development of more than 30 emerging Indonesian scientists and conservationists through direct employment and internship
OUR PARTNERS
PARTNERship with
aqua expeditions
We are proud to announce our latest partnership with Aqua Expeditions, which reflects our shared commitment to safeguarding Indonesia’s marine biodiversity and ecosystems through the research and conservation of manta rays. This partnership will bolster our work in manta ray ecology research and conservation in Raja Ampat and support our upcoming Indonesian Emerging Conservationist Scholarship Programme.
SUPPORT US
Our Founder and CEO Sarah Lewis was recently aboard Aqua Blue in Raja Ampat. Read about her experience, and more about our partnership on Aqua Expeditions’ website.
Support our work in conserving Indonesia’s manta rays, and empowering the next generation of manta researchers and conservationists by DONATING HERE.
