Wildlife in Crisis: Manta Ray Entanglement

WILDLIFE IN CRISIS: MANTA RAY ENTANGLEMENT
WITH PIX AND VID
By Shuk Yee Tsang
A heartbreaking moment was captured when a distressed manta ray was spotted circling helplessly in the water, struggling after getting entangled.
Geoffrey Aquino, 52, a videographer from Queensland, Australia, filmed the incident just off the Noosa coastline.
Geoffrey has spent years documenting marine life, but says he rarely encounters manta rays in distress, making this sighting especially difficult to witness.
He also witnessed a similar incident months earlier involving an entangled mother whale and her calf, an experience that has stayed with him ever since.
Geoffrey is on a mission to bring awareness to these hard truths to bring forth change to how we treat and save sea life.
Geoffrey said: “Today should’ve been a simple, peaceful morning on the water, until it wasn’t.
"Months ago, a mother whale and her calf entangled right off Noosa Main Beach, and that moment has stayed with me.
"And today, it happened again. Different species. Same heartbreak.
"Right beside the coastline today, I filmed a manta ray in clear distress, circling, slowing, signalling for help in the only way a wild animal can when something is terribly wrong.
"These moments shake you.
"They remind you how vulnerable our marine life really is, and how quickly things can turn from beautiful to gut-wrenching."
One viewer said: “Oh no… thank you for being their voice.”
Another viewer chimed in: “It’s always truly difficult to film these entanglements but this is the ONLY way to be a voice for them.”
A third viewer added: “Thank you for capturing this footage and bringing awareness to this horrific situation.”
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