The coastal area of the district of Inhambane, which includes Vilanculos, Tofo, Barra and Zavora, is the most important tourist destination in Mozambique. The attraction of the area is largely driven by coastal and maritime tourism. Scuba diving is prominent in the area, and the destination is well-known for manta rays, whale sharks and humpback whales, who attract divers from all over the world. Despite their importance for the local economy, whale sharks and manta rays are still lacking targeted forms of protection in Mozambique. Much of the area where these animals are concentrated, which ranges from Praia de Zavora to the São Sebastião channel, is not yet protected.



The reefs of Tofo receive a considerable amount of attention due to the numerous tourism businesses that operate in the area and the continuous work of the Marine Megafauna Foundation monitoring mantas and whale sharks.  Zavora is a hot spot for impressive marine biodiversity, including considerable numbers of manta rays, whale sharks, humpback whales, and sea turtles, but also a large number of nudibranchs and coral species.


Similar to Zavora, another important area of attention are the shallow wetlands and lagoons that are formed in the Inhambane bay. These areas, such as the lagoon in proximity to Barra, are an important reproduction area for a large number of reef and pelagic fish, but also support a considerable variety of endemic species, such as seahorses, who are increasingly under pressure because of illegal trade.More than 250 species of fish inhabit the waters and reefs of Inhambane, including 18 that had never been recorded elsewhere in Mozambique.


 Preliminary studies have also revealed more than 140 different types of opisthobranchs102 in the area. These small, colorful mollusks are a favorite amongst underwater photographers and could be a real magnet to place Zavora on the regional tourist map. The bays are also largely frequented by mantas and whale sharks, although more recently, these animals prefer the waters of Zavora to Tofo due to lower tourism pressure in Zavora bay. The area also has dugongs and five species of sea turtles, as well as coral reefs, mangrove forests and extensive seagrass beds.




There are two recognized species of manta rays in the world, both of which are found in the waters of Inhambane. The giant manta is a migratory large fish, traveling with ocean currents to areas where upwellings of nutrient-rich water increase prey concentrations, and the reef manta, who tends to be more localized in nearshore waters, though undertaking migrations on both a daily and longerterm basis. Both species are found on the reefs of Inhambane, in two principal cleaning stations:103 one known as “Manta Reef”, which is a 250 square meter rocky reef, and the other is Giant’s Castle, a deeper narrow reef plateau, just outside of Tofo bay. 



Another main characteristic of this stretch of coastal waters is that this area also boasts a high concentration of whale sharks due to the presence of an abundant food source. Reaching up 20m in length, these large fish are filter feeders, and like other large planktivorous animals, such as baleen whales, they tend to aggregate on a seasonal basis, to take advantage of seasonally abundant, high-density patches of zooplankton. 


In the tropics and subtropics, these usually revolve around fish or crab spawning driven by oceanographic and climatic processes. The area of Inhambane, however, is unique, with whale sharks present in large numbers year-round – estimated to a mean monthly density of roughly 30 sharks per 100 km2. The cause for such high concentration appears to be a unique confluence of several different local upwellings that bring cool, nutrient-rich water to the surface and promote the growth.


.A notable trend in this coastal area is the observed, accelerated loss of terrestrial and marine biodiversity, due to the increase of population, the expansion of agriculture, the development of tourist activities in absence of a resource management plan as well as logging and poaching of marine species. A driver of the loss of marine life is a sharp increase in illegal commercial fishing, with growing use of fishing nets even in tidal pools, seriously undermining the capacity for fish stock to reproduce. As a consequence of the increased pressure, the population of mantas has sharply decreased in recent years.


There are few places in the world where whale sharks and mantas are found in large numbers. In sub-Saharan Africa, Mozambique stands out for having year-round whales and sharks, with Inhambane as a major shelter. Although these species are on the IUCN Red List as globallyto finalize a proposed list of Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) and the proposed Inhambane to Zavora MPA also falls within the proposed KBA. 


The designation of this site as KBA would not only help justify the establishment of stronger management and conservation measures, but also help to preserve a globally important population of manta rays as well as other marine biodiversity in the area.vulnerable (IUCN, 2012), no protection measure is in place in Mozambique. The main threats to these species are the commercialization of shark fins and of manta’s meat on the Asian market, as well as the growing pressure of tourism activity. The creation and enforcement of a large no-take MPA in these areas could play a fundamental role in sustaining the population numbers of these important species.

Small cryptic creatures in the lagoon of Barra have also become harder to find. Seahorses are actively hunted by local fishermen and sold to the Asian market. The same fate is reserved for other species, such as sea cucumbers.