Manta and mobula rays are being targeted by fishermen worldwide to sustain the Chinese medicinal gill plate trade. These graceful planktivores feed by filtering plankton through their feathery gill plates, which do not have the ability to detoxify or filter diseases from the human body upon consumption, mind you.
As these local fisherman find an ends to a means of providing for their families, the Association of Coastal Conservation of Mozambique works to protect these animals down the beach.