The complete mitochondrial genome of the Reef Manta Ray, Mobula alfredi, from Hawaii

Abstract

We provide the complete mitochondrial genome of the reef manta ray, Mobula alfredi, using an ezRAD approach. The total length of the mitogenome was 18,166 bp and contained 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNAs genes, two ribosomal RNA genes, and one non-coding control region. The gene organization and length are similar to other Mobula species. This reference mitogenome that includes the control region is expected to be a valuable resource for molecular-based species identification, population genomics, and phylogeography.

Keywords:

• Reef Manta Ray
• Mobula alfredi
• Mobulidae
• devil rays
• mitogenome

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to Lee James with Ultimate Whale Watch Adventure, Craig Venema, and Amy Miller for providing a boat and valuable time in the field. Thanks to Stephen Karl, Brian Bowen, Rob Toonen, and Jamison Gove for their support of this research. Thanks to the State of Hawai‘i Division of Aquatic Resources. Thanks to Nan Himmelsbach and Andrea Schmidt for assistance with 16S sequencing.

Ethical approval

Part of this research was conducted under the University of Hawai‘i Animal Care & Use Committee, Protocol No. 08-591-2, and Assurance number A3423-01. This study complied with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) policies for research involving species at risk of extinction, the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. We used non-lethal sampling methods, and no animal was caught, handled, or removed from its natural habitat for the purpose of this study.

Author contributions

JW, RC, and MD conceived, designed, and implemented the study. MD performed all fieldwork and sampling. JW performed all benchwork. JW and RC performed all bioinformatics and analyzed the data. JW wrote the manuscript with RC and MD.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The genome sequence data that support the findings of this study are openly available in GenBank of NCBI at [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] under the accession no. OP562409. The associated BioProject, SRA, and BioSample accession numbers are PRJNA899543, SRR22233901, and SAMN31097093 respectively.

Additional information

Funding

This research was partially supported by donations from Sven and Krista Lindblad to the Hawaiʻi Association for Marine Education and Research, the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research (CIMAR), NOAA’s West Hawai‘i Integrated Ecosystem Assessment, the University of Texas at Austin’s Provosts Early Career Fellowship, and NOAA’s Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center.