Conservation into action! Manta CALL!

By Paloma Chandrachud

Pic by Guy Stevens.

Week 2 started off at full speed with us “officially” starting our preparations for World Manta day (just around the corner on the 17th!) There is so much excitement in the air and we, as volunteers, are over the moon to be able to contribute to an educational outreach program! This year The Manta Project has decided to collaborate with a local school to spend a whole day interacting with students through 3D models and games. Since the theme this year is “The Power of Storytelling”, this kind of event fits perfectly with that narrative. The Isla Mujeres community has long interacted with “mantarrayas” and have passed down generational knowledge about these magnificent creatures. We aim to have fun with the students while understanding their relationship to the ocean and how to involve them a whole lot more in conservation efforts. We’ve spent a total of 3 days just painting, paper-macheing, cardboard chopping and much more to get ready for the 17th of Sept. We even decided to hold a “Manta Trivia Game”- how much do you know about mantas? One team wins all! 

Part of this initiative is to partake in community collaboration. The community of Isla Mujeres thrives on eco-tourism, and while swimming or interacting with manta rays is limited to research, it is important to reaffirm that we are on the same page on how to protect these beautiful giants. The Manta Project has created “codes of conduct” that each fisher and whale shark tour guide will keep on their boats in honor of following the rules. This code of conduct emphasizes on guidelines to follow when in the presence of Manta rays and how to best respect their space.

On Wednesday (09/ 11), we had the opportunity to dive with Pablo Valdez an extremely experienced diver from the island itself. Pablo, our tour guide and dive instructor for the day, took us to 2 beautiful dive spots around the island- Musa, the underwater museum and Manchones Reef. Musa was created to dedicate a specific space for divers to explore while protecting the already existing reefs. Over time, it has become a safe haven for reef-dwelling animals and definitely a different experience for any diver!

The entire museum is spaced out within a National Marine Park which makes the appreciation of the installations and the thought behind their creation even greater. Machones reef was an entirely different world! With an array of fish, coral, lobsters and rays, the reef and its inhabitants were truly diverse and incredible! To be able to witness first hand the connection and relationship between each marine creature but also to learn about the history of reefs around Isla Mujeres. Reefs in the Caribbean also hold great importance for Manta rays.

Manta Rays are known to visit reefs for various purposes- some head down there to visit “cleaning stations” and some go there to feed on certain plankton. Both these dive sites are part of the MPA which ensures these sites are off limits to fishers and tourists and hence protecting native marine species. 

On Thursday (09/12), we had the privilege of meeting Valentina Cucchiara! Valentina is a brilliantly talented videographer and photographer who works on multiple projects for The Manta Project. As aspiring conservationists, it was interesting to hear about her journey and the challenges she has faced over the years. More importantly, something that she focused on, was questioning the message you want to portray through your work- a story. She emphasized on the need to understand your abilities and how to hone into them in order to make the impact last longer and reach a wider audience. While using a lens may not be for everyone, the thought of storytelling gives you perspective on how you’d like to contribute in your own way. 

Our chat with Valentina was aboard our “manta vessel” during our field trip out to sea. While the ocean was calm and it seemed like maybe the mantas were too shy to come say hi, we focused our efforts on honing our field skills. Even though the ocean was silent, we made sure to enter our GPS coordinates, monitor the number of boats (tourist, sport and fishing), attempted to deploy the CDT (but alas it wouldn’t turn on), fly the drone for an aerial survey, and deploy the Plankton Net to see what beautiful manta food we had for the day. These skills become important when learning about field data collection and processing data! 

The conversation with Valentina was kept alive through the “Conservation Storytelling Workshop” held by the Manta Trust on Friday (09/13) featuring Jasmine Corbett (Media & Communications Manager) and Francesca Page (an ocean artist, diver and avid photographer). The workshop focused on “Artivism”- a form of activism through media channels like art, photography, writing, film and many more. As the theme suggests, they focused on how to use your passion, your skills and nurturing those abilities into telling a story to a varied audience- be it the scientific community or the general public!

Definitely easier said than done but listening to their personal stories and understanding that collaboration is key when trying to impact change was thought provoking. Both Jasmine and Francesca were quite candid when talking about their journeys, rejections and their personal growth which gives us a new perspective on how truly hard “artivism” is. The session ended with the viewers being able to ask questions which highlighted the fact that even though everyone’s path will be different, the end goal of conservation and protection remains the same. You just have to work toward it in a way that truly resonates with you! 

Cenotes are a huge part of the history and culture of Riviera Maya and this is what we decided to explore on our day off on Saturday (09/14). We woke up super early to catch the first ferry off the island and head down to Puerto Morelos. There we took advantage of public transportation, only to end up taking a taxi into the depths of the jungle. Since it was a first time experience for one of our volunteers, we decided to go to a closed cenote as well as an open cenote. Cenote Blanca Flor (open) was our first stop. The serenity of the cenote amidst the jungle was breathtaking. While the water was quite murky, you could see beautiful lily pads floating right in the center of the cenote. Since it was an open cenote, the sunlight beamed throughout the water and warmed you right up in the cold waters.  Cenote Kin-Ha (closed) on the other hand was an underground cavern with a single hole on the ceiling, allowing a beam of sunlight to shine through. The cavern is inhabited by bats on the ceilings and tiny catfish that swim in its waters. The water was crystal clear and incredibly cold. Since it is underground, there are structures for artificial lighting, however, we were not privy to that since there was a power outage in the region. We collectively decided that experiencing the cenote in the dark would be far more memorable! 

Cenotes are natural sinkholes which form when limestone caves in and creates a hole, exposing groundwater to the surface. Historically, cenotes were used by the Mayans as a source of freshwater and culturally, they believed them to be a home and a gateway to the underworld. They would make offerings and sacrifices to appease the gods. Today, they remain an important part of Mexican culture and bring people from all over the world to experience their beauty from above ground or dive into their mysterious underwater caverns! 

And with that we come to the end of our second week, here on the beautiful island of Isla Mujeres! Join us in the next blog on another adventure filled week with the Volunteers of the September Program!