Using Drones to Assess Volitional Swimming Kinematics of Manta Ray Behaviors in the Wild

Vicky Fong; Sarah Hoffmann; Jessica Pate

doi:10.3390/drones6050111

journal article Open Access Apr 28, 2022

Using Drones to Assess Volitional Swimming Kinematics of Manta Ray Behaviors in the Wild

Vicky Fong

Sarah Hoffmann Jessica Pate

Drones Vol. 6 No. 5 pp. 111 · MDPI AG

View at Publisher Save 10.3390/drones6050111

Abstract

Drones have become increasingly popular tools to study marine megafauna but are underutilized in batoid research. We used drones to collect video data of manta ray (Mobula cf. birostris) swimming and assessed behavior-specific kinematics in Kinovea, a semi-automated point-tracking software. We describe a ‘resting’ behavior of mantas making use of strong currents in man-made inlets in addition to known ‘traveling’ and ‘feeding’ behaviors. No significant differences were found between the swimming speed of traveling and feeding behaviors, although feeding mantas had a significantly higher wingbeat frequency than traveling mantas. Resting mantas swam at a significantly slower speed and wingbeat frequency, suggesting that they were continuously swimming with the minimum effort required to maintain position and buoyancy. Swimming speed and wingbeat frequency of traveling and feeding behaviors overlapped, which could point to other factors such as prey availability and a transitional behavior, influencing how manta rays swim. These baseline swimming kinematic data have valuable applications to other emerging technologies in manta ray research.

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Details

Published: Apr 28, 2022
Vol/Issue: 6(5)
Pages: 111
License: View

Authors

V

Vicky Fong

Marine Megafauna Foundation, West Palm Beach, FL 33411, USA

S

Sarah Hoffmann

Merck Animal Health, Boise, ID 83702, USA

J

Jessica Pate

Marine Megafauna Foundation, West Palm Beach, FL 33411, USA

Funding

Disney Conservation Fund

Cite This Article

Vicky Fong, Sarah Hoffmann, Jessica Pate (2022). Using Drones to Assess Volitional Swimming Kinematics of Manta Ray Behaviors in the Wild. Drones, 6(5), 111. https://doi.org/10.3390/drones6050111

Using Drones to Assess Volitional Swimming Kinematics of Manta Ray Behaviors in the Wild

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