A research conducted by Manta Pacific Research Foundation and the University of Hawaii has concluded that populations of Manta Rays along the Hawaiian Islands are vulnerable. This research led to a legislation that has just passed at Hawaii’s Committee on Water, Land, and Ocean Resources.

The Resolution calls for the establishment of a working group to protect the batoidea order, including manta rays, from poaching and fishing in Hawaiian waters. Specifically, it directs the Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) with researching and pursuing all possible means of protecting manta rays, and drafting proposed administrative rules to prevent poaching, fishing, or killing manta rays.