Harmful Algal Blooms (HAB), commonly known as Red Tide, affect human and environmental health, as well as economic activities, such as fishing, aquaculture, and tourism. In order to predict and minimize the effects of HAB, offices belonging to UNESCO have set out interdisciplinary research programs which consider defining the biological and adaptation characteristics that determine under what conditions harmful algae show up and produce their harmful effects. However, to achieve this objective, it is necessary to isolate and maintain strains in culture and formalize the establishment of reference collections.

With the purpose of supporting international and research offices related with the study of HAB, we submitted the project “Toward the establishment of the first taxonomic and biologic data bank of dinoflagellates in Mexico” to CONACYT (Call 2000), whose main objective was the establishment of the first live collection of marine dinoflagellates in Mexico. The project was approved so we started working to establish the Collection of Marine Dinoflagellates (CODIMAR) in October 2000 and finished with its opening in February 2004 through this internet space.

In February 2004 CODIMAR was formally recorded in the Public and Private Register for Museography and Scientific Collection of Wild Species (code BCS-ALG-161-0104) and in the Registry of Service Providers linked with marketing of specimens, parts and derivatives of wild life (code SGPA-DGVS-COM-081-D.F.) of the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources.

On May 16, 2007 the Director General of CIBNOR, Dr. Sergio Hernández Vázquez, grants the appointment of Curator of CODIMAR to Dr. Lourdes Morquecho Escamilla.

At present the heritage of the collection is made up of the main harmful species in Mexico. Likewise, as a result of the technical assistance given to a student who graduated from the Master’s Program at CIBNOR, the collection has several isolated strains in a northwestern coastal area of Cuba.

The main function of the collection is to provide dinoflagellate strains to the national and international scientific and academic community to be used in research and education.