Short Communication: Genetic variation of oceanic manta ray (Mobula birostris) based on mtDNA data in the Savu Sea, Indonesia

MUHAMMAD DANIE AL MALIK (Biodiversitas Indonesia (BIONESIA). Jl. Buluh Indah No. 122, Denpasar 80118, Bali, Indonesia)
MOCHAMAD IQBAL HERWATA PUTRA (Elasmobranch and Charismatic Species Program, Yayasan Konservasi Cakrawala Indonesia. Jl. Pejaten Barat Raya No 16A, Ragunan, Jakarta Selatan 12550, Jakarta. Indonesia)
EDY TOPAN (Misool Foundation, Savu Sea Program. Jl. Sarotari Timur, Larantuka, Flores Timur 86213, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia)
NI PUTU DIAN PERTIWI (Biology and Marine Fisheries Department, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Pendidikan Ganesha. Jl. Udayana No.11, Buleleng 81116, Bali, Indonesia)
ENEX YUNI ARTININGSIH (Biodiversitas Indonesia (BIONESIA). Jl. Buluh Indah No. 122, Denpasar 80118, Bali, Indonesia)
SILA KARTIKA SARI (Yayasan Reef Check Indonesia. Jl. Tukad Balian No. 1A, Denpasar 80226, Bali, Indonesia)
SARAH LEWIS (Manta Trust - Indonesia Manta Project, Indonesia)
DERTA PRABUNING (Yayasan Reef Check Indonesia. Jl. Tukad Balian No. 1A, Denpasar 80226, Bali, Indonesia)
ANDRIANUS SEMBIRING (Biodiversitas Indonesia (BIONESIA). Jl. Buluh Indah No. 122, Denpasar 80118, Bali, Indonesia)

Biodiversitas Journal of Biological Diversity
Vol. 23 No. 3 (2022)

Abstract. Malik MDA, Putra MIH, Topan E, Pertiwi NPD, Artiningsih EY, Sari SK, Lewis S, Prabuning D, Sembiring A. 2022. Short Communication: Genetic variation of oceanic manta ray (Mobula birostris) based on mtDNA data in the Savu Sea, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 23: 1700-1706. The Savu Sea, one of Indonesia's top conservation priorities, is home to various marine charismatic species, including the oceanic manta ray (Mobula birostris), whose conservation status is currently endangered and is protected by the Indonesian government. However, due to domestic and global demand for its fishery products, as well as shortcomings in fisheries management, this species is still poached and bycaught in the Savu Sea. Understanding their population structure is important to achieve effective conservation and fisheries management strategies that will have a positive impact on preserving their population in this area. This study aims to reveal the genetic variation of oceanic manta rays in the Savu Sea. Thirty samples from three locations in the Savu Sea were successfully preserved from East Flores (24), West Manggarai (4), and Rote Ndao (2) and then analyzed using ND5 locus from Mithocondiral DNA (mtDNA). The result indicated a close genetic relationship between three locations (East Flores, West Manggarai, and Rote Ndao) based on the phylogenetic tree and Analysis of Molecular Variance (AMOVA) result with value of 0.05158 (P-value = 0.62268) indicated as a single population. In conclusion, the findings of this study provide some insight into the possibility of manta ray populations in the Savu Sea having strong connectivity between areas, which is critical information for regulators and managers to integrate conservation and management strategies within the Savu Sea.