Dive into the ocean: discovering the underwater world of your own city

BRAVO GONZALO; FEDERICO MARQUEZ; BROGGER M; BIGATTI GREGORIO

Montreal

Congreso; World Conference on Marine Biodiversity; 2018

Université LAVAL

Sea floor is one of the less explored ambient in our planet and few people have the possibility to observe the wonderful creatures that live there. In Argentina, particularly in the Patagonian coast, most people who live close to the sea, have no knowledge about animals and algae living under the water, recognizing only commercial species (fish, shrimp, and some bivalves). ?Proyectosub? is an outreach initiative that seeks to teach about marine invertebrates biodiversity using underwater images and scientific information combined in educational materials distributed free of charge. The production of the educational material is sponsored by scientific awards, conservation projects and local companies to be distributed in schools, dive centers and public places where people can recognize and learn about local species. A mayor part of this project is to develop field trips, talks, conferences and workshops, trying to show the great biodiversity of the Patagonian region and the importance of its preservation. Recently a low-cost remotely operated vehicle (ROV) has been used to stream HD video to a surface laptop with screen giving students the opportunity to explore the seafloor and learn about the essential function that marine organisms play in coastal ecosystems.