TAMPA, Fla. — Floridians were enraged last summer when a viral video showed men offshore Panama City capturing a giant manta ray, a federally threatened species, and hoisting the animal onto their boat.
That anger only skyrocketed when it became clear that Florida’s wildlife agency had approved the capture: The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission granted a permit to an aquarium supplier company, Dynasty Marine Associates, to catch the manta ray for a SeaWorld in Abu Dhabi.
The video, taken by a dolphin tour boat crew, shed light on a little-known yet long-standing policy that allows the government to grant the legal capture in state waters of endangered marine life, like sharks and rays, for commercial and entertainment purposes across the world.
Now, bipartisan Florida lawmakers say it’s time for a change.
State Sen. Ileana Garcia, a Republican, and Rep. Lindsay Cross, a Democrat, have filed measures that would ban the capture and transport of endangered or threatened marine species from Florida waters for aquariums and other educational exhibitions.
Known as the Marine and Aquatic Native Threatened Animal (MANTA) Protection Act, the measure outlines what lawmakers say are long overdue reforms to the state’s Special Activity Licenses program. The changes would prioritize protecting vulnerable marine species instead of corporate profit, the lawmakers said.
“Floridians were shocked to learn that the practice of capturing endangered or threatened marine animals for exhibition is legal, despite federal and state protections,” Cross said in a statement to the Tampa Bay Times.
“This bill will close this loophole and ensure that these wild animals — some on the brink of extinction — will live their lives in their natural habitats, not in a fish tank halfway across the globe,” she said.
The measure comes as the wildlife commission has vowed to revisit its policies after a bipartisan coalition of federal and state lawmakers wrote the agency in August with their concerns.
Rodney Barreto, chairperson of the wildlife commission, responded to lawmakers in September saying the agency intends to begin a rulemaking process in early 2026. Barreto at the time also said the commission had temporarily halted issuing new licenses that allow for the capture of shark and ray species with federal protections.
Despite the agency working through potential new changes, lawmakers have still filed a measure of their own.
Alicia Prygoski, the strategic legislative affairs manager at the Animal Legal Defense Fund, said in a statement that the bills would close a “troubling” loophole that has allowed marine animals to be captured despite federal protections.
“These animals endure severe suffering when removed from their natural habitats and confined to small aquariums for entertainment — practices that also place already vulnerable populations at even greater risk,” Prygoski said.
Florida’s legislative session begins Tuesday and will run for 60 days.
It’s not yet clear how large corporations like SeaWorld, which directly benefits from the state-approved captures, will respond to the legislation. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday afternoon.
A spokesperson for the wildlife agency said it doesn’t comment on proposed legislation.
The nonprofit Defenders of Wildlife, which worked with lawmakers to craft the bill’s language, celebrated Friday after Cross filed her version of the measure. That move made the proposal a bipartisan effort stretching across both chambers of the Florida Legislature.
“Florida is a leader in protecting our native marine species,” said Katherine Sayler, the nonprofit’s Southeast representative. “Rep. Cross and Sen. Garcia’s bill will reduce pressure on these animals in Florida’s waters and support their recovery.”
(The Tampa Bay Times launched the Environment Hub in 2025 to focus on some of Florida’s most urgent and enduring challenges. You can contribute through our journalism fund by clicking here).
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