{{Short description|Manta ray photo identification database}} {{Infobox organization | status = nonprofit | purpose = Online citizen science database to identify and track manta rays | parent_organization = Marine Megafauna Foundation, WildMe | website = https://www.mantamatcher.org }}
'''Manta Matcher''' is a global online database for manta rays.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Town|first1=Christopher|last2=Marshall|first2=Andrea|last3=Nutthaporn|first3=Sebastien|title=Manta Matcher: automated photographic identification of manta rays using keypoint features|journal=Ecology and Evolution|date=2013|volume=3|issue=7|pages=1902–1914|doi=10.1002/ECE3.587|pmid=23919138|pmc=3728933|bibcode=2013EcoEv...3.1902T }}</ref> ==Creation== It is one of the Wildbook Web applications developed by Wild Me, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization in the United States, and was created in partnership with Andrea Marshall of the Marine Megafauna Foundation. alt=Oceanic manta ray being photographed|thumb|Oceanic manta ray being photographed Manta rays have unique spot patterning on their undersides, which allows for individual identification.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Marshall|first1=A.D.|last2=Dudgeon|first2=C.L.|last3=Bennett|first3=M.B.|title=Size and structure of a photographically identified population of manta rays Manta alfredi in southern Mozambique|journal=Marine Biology|date=2011|volume=158|issue=5|pages=1111–1124|doi=10.1007/s00227-011-1634-6|bibcode=2011MarBi.158.1111M |s2cid=86204140}}</ref> Scuba divers around the world can photograph mantas<ref>{{cite web|title=Photographing Mantas|url=http://www.mantamatcher.org/photographing.jsp|website=mantamatcher.org}}</ref> and upload their manta identification photographs to the Manta Matcher website,<ref>{{cite web|title=Participate: Report an Encounter|url=http://mantamatcher.org/submit.jsp|website=mantamatcher.org}}</ref> supporting global research and conservation efforts. ==Identification of rays== Manta Matcher is a pattern-matching software that eases researcher workload; key spot pattern features are extracted using a scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT) algorithm,<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Town|first1=Christopher|last2=Marshall|first2=Andrea|last3=Nutthaporn|first3=Sebastien|title=Manta Matcher: automated photographic identification of manta rays using keypoint features|journal=Ecology and Evolution|date=2013|volume=3|issue=7|pages=1902–1914|doi=10.1002/ECE3.587|pmid=23919138|pmc=3728933|bibcode=2013EcoEv...3.1902T }}</ref> which can cope with complications presented by highly variable spot patterns and low contrast photographs. ==Purpose and research supported== This citizen science tool is free to use by researchers worldwide. Manta Matcher represents a global initiative to centralize manta ray sightings and facilitate research on these vulnerable species through collaborative studies, including the cross-referencing of regional databases.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Steinhoff |first=Nane |date=2023-01-10 |title=First international migration of manta rays confirmed |url=https://oceanographicmagazine.com/news/first-international-migration-of-manta-rays-confirmed/ |access-date=2023-02-09 |website=Oceanographic |language=en-GB}}</ref>
Manta Matcher has already supported research<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Germanov|first1=Elitza|last2=Marshall|first2=Andrea|title=Running the Gauntlet: regional movement patterns of Manta alfredi through a complex of parks and fisheries|journal=PLOS ONE|date=2014|volume=9|issue=10|article-number=e110071|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0110071|pmid=25337865|pmc=4206290|bibcode=2014PLoSO...9k0071G|doi-access=free}}</ref> that contributed to the listing of reef mantas (''Manta alfredi'') on Appendix 1 of the Convention on Migratory Species in November 2014.<ref>{{cite news|title=31 Species of Migratory Animals Given UN Protection|url=http://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/31-species-of-migratory-animals-given-un-protection-20141110-11js7y.html|publisher=Sydney Morning Herald|date=November 10, 2014}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist|30em}}
== External links == * {{Official website|http://mantamatcher.org}}
Category:Mobula Category:Online databases Category:Biodiversity databases