Volunteer divers from Victoria are dipping into the ocean for the fourth time Thursday, taking thousands of school kids in B.C. with them on an “underwater safari” to see marine life including wolf eels.
The public can join in via live streaming on YouTube on phones or computers.
Getting kids engaged in the underwater world is one of the mandates of the non-profit Fish Eye Project, which will also have a rep or two at Arbutus Middle School to take questions from five classrooms registered for the free event.
Online viewers will be able to communicate with divers at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. as they explore a cliff-like wall underwater at Willis Point in Brentwood Bay. “As you descend on the wall, you find a lot of really neat species that live in all the little cracks and crevices,” said project co-founder Mike Irvine. The dives — at least 30 minutes each — are a chance for students and the public to explore places they wouldn’t normally see in a fun and exciting way, Irvine said.
About 130 teachers, mostly from the Island, are registered for the event, along with a few international enthusiasts.
“A big highlight is going to be wolf eels — they’re huge,” said Irvine. The divers have located more than one den of eels and seen specimens three to four feet long. Other creatures of the deep on view will include kelp crabs that are “bigger than any I’ve ever seen,” said Irvine, along with anemones and red rock crabs.
Irvine will be on the surface MCing the event, which will include a French component for immersion classrooms.
The group has been diving since 2009 but started its educational live dives in June, getting out the message of marine awareness. “Any donations, anybody who can help out in any way, we’d really appreciate it,” Irvine said.
Fish Eye Project was recently sponsored by Aqua Lung Canada, the company created by renowned underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau.
