Art and education in the conservation of a giant of the seas: The acting of the cultural troupe Arte Manha and the Meros do Brasil Project Jorge Galdinoa, Maíra Borgonhab*, Jonas Rodrigues Leiteb, Matheus O. Freitasb,c, Áthila A. Bertoncinib,d
aMovimento Cultural Arte Manha, Rua Dr. José André Cruz, 487, Nova Coreia, Caravelas, BA, Brazil, CEP: 45.900-000 bInstituto Meros do Brasil, Rua. Benjamin Constant, 67 CJ 1104, 10o. andar. Centro, Curitiba, PR, Brazil CEP: 80060-020 cGrupo de Pesquisas em Ictiofauna (GPIC), Museu de História Natural Capão da Imbuia, Prefeitura de Curitiba, Rua Prof. Benedito Conceição 407, CEP 82810-080, Curitiba, PR, Brazil dUniversidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UNIRIO), Laboratório de Ictiologia Teórica e Aplicada (LICTA), Av. Pasteur, 458 – sl. 314a, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil CEP 22290-240 *Corresponding author: mairameros@gmail.com
Introduction Commonly known as the Atlantic goliath grouper, Epinephelus itajara (Lichtenstein, 1822) is a marine fish from the Epinephelidae family. Because its slow growth, late maturing, reach of large sizes (up to two meters wide and weighting 400 kilograms), and living in various costal ecosystems, the species is highly vulnerable to anthropic activity, such as fishing and polluting, and it is at risk of disappearing from the Brazilian coast. The Atlantic goliath groupers are present in tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean. They live in estuarine and costal areas, including mangroves, coral reefs, rocky shores, submerged rocks, and artificial structures, such as shipwrecks and piers. They feed on crustaceans and fish, such as stingrays and catfish, and sometimes even young turtles. Besides their large size, they are considered peaceful, allowing a closer contact from divers (researches, recreational or fishermen). Epinephelus itajara can live up to 40 years old and becomes reproductive mature with seven years,
when reaches one meter in total length. They form shoals, also known as aggregations, in specific periods and places of the year, to reproduce. In this aspect, research efforts have found the disappearing of the goliath grouper aggregations in places they used happen. Its still unknown the number of individuals and the biomass that is being captured through illegal fishing activities in Brazilian waters. Worried about these indicators, researches throughout the Atlantic Ocean have been studying the species, which is classified as critically endangered (CR) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. While the species has been protected for more than twenty years in the South of the United States, in Brazil, since 2002 the capture of the Atlantic goliath grouper is prohibited. In 2016, a new Normative Instruction was issued, protecting goliath groupers from capture, transport, and commerce until 2023.
Meros do Brasil Project In the year of 2002, observing the declining of goliath groupers populations over the Brazilian coast, a group of researchers from the South of the country started the Projeto Meros do Brasil (“Brazilian Atlantic Goliath Grouper Project”), in order to raise funds and facilitate research and conservation efforts of the Atlantic goliath groupers. The Projeto Meros do Brasil is funded by Petrobras, through its Petrobras Socioambiental program. Petrobras sponsorship encouraged and it is still supporting the development of new researches in Brazil, not only for the conservation of the Atlantic goliath grouper, but also for coastal environments associated to the species, such as mangroves, coral reefs and rocky shores.
Nowadays, the Projeto Meros do Brasil acts through a network that involves more than 50 institutions in three main fields: (a) research and conservation of the species; (b) environmental management and eco-development; (c) education and environmental communication among nine coastal Brazilian states.
Art & Education Activities for the Atlantic Goliath Grouper conservation The activities developed in the focal point of the State of Bahia, by the Cultural Movement Arte Manha in the scope of the Meros do Brasil Project, aims to popularize the scientific practices, along with the local communities proposing the building up of strategies for the self-management of the natural resources. This initiative, from 2007 to 2013, involved circa 15 thousand people from kids to elders, including traditional communities, gender issues and different social-cultural identities in their Performing arts, Music and Art-educational workshops. The project has in its artistic expressions, a set o fabulous tools to reach the social transformation. The main training activities developed are the wood carving and papietagem (paper mache) workshops, and the production of musical plays. The initiative of bringing the Atlantic goliath grouper in the form of an allegorical-artistic representation aims to reach the coastal population, exploring a deeper and symbolic view of the scientific results reached along our marine and coastal areas. Inspired in the Brazilian popular folk manifestations of Reisado and Folguedos, such as Burrinha
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and Bumba Meu Boi, the desire to have the goliath grouper - a flagship species from Marine Protected areas - in the theatre scenes emerged from a successful partnership between Cultural Movement Arte Manha and Projeto Meros do Brasil. In this context, the Atlantic goliath grouper is the super star, inviting other threatened species, such as the parrotfishes, crabs, sharks and the humpback whale. Along with them, comes the mermaid and Yemanja, as enchanted guardians bringing protection to the sea creatures and imposing respect and obedience to mankind.
Conclusions & Perspectives The Meros do Brasil team believes that continuous exercise of the traditional and contemporary practices not dissociated from the environmental issues brings citizens light to the critical thought and consciousness in the daily practice of sustainability.
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