Eat-clean-repeat: reef manta rays (Mobula alfredi) undertake repetitive feeding-cleaning cycles at an aggregation site in Seychelles
Newsome, Rachel J., Grimmel, Henriette M.V., Pouponeau, Dillys K., Moulinie, Ellie E., Andre, Amy A., and Bullock, Robert W. (2024) Eat-clean-repeat: reef manta rays (Mobula alfredi) undertake repetitive feeding-cleaning cycles at an aggregation site in Seychelles. Frontiers in Marine Science, 11. 1422655.
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Abstract
To maximise energy efficiency, manta ray (Mobula alfredi, M. birostris) foraging and cleaning behaviours are thought to often be mutually exclusive, whereby individuals will only forage when prey density thresholds are met and will only clean when foraging is too energetically costly (i.e., thresholds are not met). Here, snorkel surveys and remote camera cleaning station footage show reef manta rays (M. alfredi) undertaking repetitive and short-term movements between surface-feeding and cleaning station visits around D’Arros Island, Seychelles. These observations demonstrate that foraging and cleaning behaviours are not mutually exclusive even when prey densities are high. At D’Arros Island, the proximity of cleaning stations to highly productive foraging areas may afford individuals the opportunity to undertake non-foraging activity without incurring significant energy loss from the shifts in behaviour. These data inform a more nuanced understanding of this species’ use of key habitats.
| Item ID: | 87430 |
|---|---|
| Item Type: | Article (Research - C1) |
| ISSN: | 2296-7745 |
| Keywords: | activity regime, behaviour, energy expenditure, habitat use, manta ray |
| Copyright Information: | © 2024 Newsome, Grimmel, Pouponeau, Moulinie, Andre and Bullock. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. |
| Date Deposited: | 02 Dec 2025 22:10 |
| FoR Codes: | 31 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 3103 Ecology > 310305 Marine and estuarine ecology (incl. marine ichthyology) @ 100% |
| SEO Codes: | 28 EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE > 2801 Expanding knowledge > 280102 Expanding knowledge in the biological sciences @ 100% |
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