Wherever you go in the world it’s really important to check out the dive centre you go with and make sure they abide by international Code of Conducts, and have good ethics.
Here at Jay’s Pro Dive Centre we feel so passionately about the marine environment we dive in, we have developed our own Code of Conduct for both the general marine environment, but also for interactions with megafauna. On this page you can read more about our policies and why these are important.
GENERAL DIVE POLICY
At Jay’s we believe we should take only photos, leave only bubbles. Protecting the marine environment is crucial for a successful dive centre but also for world wide conservation. We’re partnered with the marine conservation NGO Love The Oceans and actively assist marine researchers in environmental protection.
Each dive centre staff member is passionate about marine conservation so we have developed the following guidelines. If you dive with us you will also become familiar with them:
HUMPBACK WHALES
We’re lucky enough to have seasonal humpback whale migrations through our bay, right on our doorstep from May – November every year. We have 100s of whales migrate through, calving and mating as they go.
Whales are mammals and are very sensitive to boat engine noise and humans. If a whale has a negative interaction with a human or a boat, it will avoid boats and humans going forward. If that continues, the whales become scarcer and our staff and clients don’t get to see them as much. For this reason, our dive centre has developed guidelines for interacting with them, in conjunction with Love The Oceans and The World Cetacean Alliance
WHALE SHARKS
Whale sharks are classified as Endangered by the IUCN Red List, which means that the species faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild. It is estimated that the global population has decreased by 30% the past 75 years, and in the Indo-Pacific the overall decline is 63%.
The biggest threat to whale sharks is fishing: Whale sharks are targeted by illegal fisheries for the fins that are sold on the black market. Unfortunately whale sharks are also often caught as bycatch in the gill nets and beach seines that account for the majority of the fishing equipment used in artisanal fisheries in Mozambique.
Whale sharks are listed on the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) Appendix I and II, which means that the signing parties have agreed to protect the endangered species and its habitat.
Sightings of whale sharks have decreased by 79% between 2005 and 2011. Proper Code of conduct is essential to ensure the best encounter for you and the whale shark and to minimise negative impacts on the whale sharks behaviour.
MANTA RAYS
Globally there are two species of manta rays, the Reef Manta (Manta alfredi) and the Giant Manta (Manta birostris). The Mozambique coastline is unique because it is one of the few places in the world where the two species coexist.
Both species of manta ray are classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List, meaning that manta rays face a high risk of extinction in the wild. It is estimated that the global population has decreased by 30% the past 75 years, and in several regions the population reduction is as high as 80%.
The biggest threat to manta rays is fishing: Manta ray are targeted by illegal fisheries for the fins and gill rakers that are sold on the black market. Unfortunately manta rays are also often caught as bycatch in the gill nets and beach seines that account for the majority of the fishing equipment used in artisanal fisheries in Mozambique.
Both species of manta ray are listed on the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) Appendix I and II, which means that the signing parties have agreed to protect the endangered species and its habitat.
Proper Code of conduct is essential to ensure the best encounter for you and the manta ray and to minimise negative impacts on the manta rays behaviour.
CLEANING STATIONS
Manta rays visit cleaning stations to be cleaned of parasites, dead skin and bacteria by specialised cleaner fish. On average manta rays spend 119 minutes a day being cleaned, but they can spend as much as 8.5 hours a day being cleaned.
The majority of bites on manta ryas (96.3%) are on the posterior part of the body, which could affect their ability to reproduce. Cleaning promotes the healing of these bite injuries and therefore helps the manta rays maintain their reproduction cycles.
Cleaning stations are areas of the reef where fish, rays and sharks come to be cleaned of parasites, dead skin and bacteria by specialised cleaner fish. Because most sharks and rays rely on continued swimming to stay buoyant, popular cleaning stations will typically have a mild to moderate current running over the station, allowing sharks and rays to swim into the current and hover or slowly swim over the station to maximise their cleaning time.
Cleaning stations are plateaus dominated by large schools of sea goldies, butterflyfish and cleaner wrasses. There are 7 types of cleaner fish that have specialised in cleaning different parts of manta rays. Sergeant major damselfish clean the head region, moon wrasse clean the area above the gills, cleaner wrasses clean inside the mouth and gills, and butterflyfish clean the trailing edge of the pectoral fins.