iNaturalist: A potentially powerful but overlooked tool in marine conservation

iNaturalist started as an online social network for sharing biodiversity information to help each other learn about nature. However, it grew so large (more than 8,000,000 observations were added by both citizen and career... [ view full abstract ]

iNaturalist started as an online social network for sharing biodiversity information to help each other learn about nature. However, it grew so large (more than 8,000,000 observations were added by both citizen and career scientists since its creation in 2008) that it now has the potential to be a major data source for projects involving biodiversity science and conservation.  It is extremely easy to make and automatically upload observations with mobile phones, but the extra uploading step required for underwater photos has kept the number of marine observations very low when compared to terrestrial ones. Here we will use Trindade Island off Brazil as a case study, an area that has just recently gained protection, and will create upload in real time several observations made on the island. We will also encourage participants to bring and upload their own underwater photos. With this hands on demonstration, we hope to show that the uploading step has become much easier over the past few months, and that iNaturalist can be an excellent tool for monitoring marine protected areas, engaging the public in marine conservation, and monitoring coral reef health.