6 days ago
Confronting moment endangered manta ray is pulled from ocean for aquarium trade
Denis Richard, who was leading a tour off Florida, told Yahoo News his group was 'totally outraged' when they saw fishermen pull the manta ray aboard.
Video transcript
This is the confronting moment an endangered manta ray was hauled out of the ocean, right in front of a stunned tour group.
Dennis Richard, who was leading a tour group off Florida, told Yahoo News his group was totally outraged when they saw the fishermen pull the manta ray aboard.
Richard said it took them over a half hour to bring the manta ray to the boat.
I was yelling at them, asking if they were going to release the animal, and they said, no, we have a permit.
Richard believes the manta ray was being acquired for the commercial aquarium trade and is now concerned about the animals' welfare following the stressful event.
However, he says there was one upside, adding, it was enlightening for the tourists.
I'm glad they could witness it, so they can do something with their outrage.
They can investigate, they can talk to their friends, their representatives about an injustice that allows the capture of endangered species, especially for public display.
