scientific patronage
ALEXANDRE MEINESZ
It is here, around Porquerolles, Port-Cros, Le Levant and the Giens peninsula, that the Dive.Explo360 team dives and captures its underwater images.
Posidonia meadows, rocky seabeds, coralligenous habitats, sand, drop-offs and wrecks create a wide variety of landscapes. They are home to the species and behaviours we observe, film and share on Dive.Explo360.
Our knowledge of the Mediterranean begins here, underwater, dive after dive.
The layout of the Hyères Islands offers a wide range of underwater conditions. Landscapes and living communities change with exposure, depth, seabed relief and currents.
This diversity makes it possible to observe, within a relatively compact area, several major habitats characteristic of the Mediterranean.
Beneath the surface, different habitats follow one another and meet: Posidonia meadows, sandy seabeds, rocks, drop-offs, coralligenous habitats and wrecks.
Each environment has its own characteristics and supports different communities. Understanding where a species lives already helps us understand how it feeds, protects itself, moves or reproduces.
Groupers, barracudas, seabreams, salemas, octopuses, cuttlefish, sea fans and many other species make up the living world we encounter on our dives.
Some are immediately visible. Others require us to slow down, notice a detail in the rock, look between Posidonia leaves or wait for a behaviour to reveal itself.
These observations in real conditions are what feed Dive.Explo360.
Established in 1963, Port-Cros National Park has a special place in this area. Protecting its land and marine environments has made it an exceptional place to observe and understand Mediterranean ecosystems.
Diving in these protected areas also makes us aware of the effect our practices can have on natural environments.
The seabed around the Hyères Islands also preserves traces of their maritime history.
The Donator and the Grec, in particular, are now among the region’s iconic dives. Their structures provide attachment surfaces, shelters and spaces that are gradually colonised by many organisms.
A wreck thus becomes both a witness to human history and a new underwater habitat.
Discovering these environments also means learning to respect them.
Good buoyancy control, avoiding contact with organisms, respecting regulations and protected areas, and appropriate mooring all help limit our impact.
For boaters, avoiding anchoring in Posidonia meadows is particularly important.
Dive.Explo360 does not aim to provide an exhaustive inventory of the Mediterranean.
We share, first and foremost, what we actually observe.
The team’s dives around the Hyères Islands gradually add to the site’s interactive videos, species profiles, articles, learning paths and other resources.
This is how our diving area also becomes our place for learning and sharing knowledge.
