The Science and Technology Department is organising a conference on Thursday 25 February from 2pm in Amphitheatre A at the University of French Guiana on the freshwater fauna of French Guiana. It will be presented by Grégory QUARTAROLLO, President of the Guyane Wild Fish association, and co-hosted by Simon Clavier, founder of Onikha.
Q hat do Guyana's rivers have to hide? An incredible diversity of habitats and living organisms! But what are these habitats? And what are these living organisms? What do we know about aquatic ecosystems? How many known species are there? How are these organisms used to diagnose the ecological status of watercourses?
These are just some of the questions that Grégory QUARTAROLLO, President of the Guyane Wild Fish association, will be trying to answer during his talk on "Guyana's freshwater fauna". His speciality: fish fauna! Or to put it simply, fish. The conference will be co-hosted by Simon Clavier, a specialist in aquatic invertebrates and founder of Onikha ("rainy season" in Arawak), a Guianese consultancy specialising in the management, protection and restoration of aquatic environments. Onikha was set up in 2018 by Simon Clavier after 12 years of studying Guiana's hydrosystems, with the aim of using his experience to help understand and enhance these elements of our collective heritage.
Various subjects will be covered, including the profession of hydrobiologist (advantages, disadvantages, examples of career paths, opportunities in French Guiana, etc.), freshwater fauna around the world and, more specifically, in French Guiana (taxonomic diversity, biogeography, a few fish stories, etc.), the workings and activities of the Guyane Wild Fish association (inventories, educational projects, naturalist expeditions, scientific research), bio-indicators and biotic indices, sampling methods and research projects....
It's the perfect way to immerse yourself in an incredible, unfamiliar world!
Visit the Guyane Wild Fish association page, followed by over 11,000 people in more than 70 countries: https://www.facebook.com/guyanewildfish. The last post, about an expedition on the Upper Maroni in September 2020, was seen by over 80,000 people worldwide!
