Barn Beach Bioblitz

Join WRI for a bioblitz around our campus and throughout Waterfront Park! We’ll be hosting a tutorial on how to participate in this bioblitz by submitting observations to iNaturalist.

But first, what is a bioblitz? Here’s what iNaturalist says about it:
“A bioblitz is a communal effort to record as many species within a designated location and time period as possible. Bioblitzes are great ways to engage the public to connect to their environment while generating useful data for science and conservation. They are also an excuse for naturalists, scientists, and curious members of the public to meet in person in the great outdoors and are a lot of fun!”

If you’d like to meet up with fellow observers, or learn how to use iNaturalist, join WRI Land Steward Tiffa at 9:30am on Saturday at WRI for a tutorial. Register for the tutorial at the link above. The tutorial will last about 30 minutes. To otherwise participate in the bioblitz, registration is optional but still encouraged, so we know how many people plan to participate.

For 24 hours, anyone who submits an observation to iNaturalist within the designated area (Enchantment Park to WRI) will automatically be part of this bioblitz! You can go out at any time of day or night to record observations of any living organism – plants, fungi, lichens, fish, birds, insects and more. The easiest way to make an observation on iNaturalist is to snap a couple photos and and upload straight from the app, but you can also take photos with a camera and upload them from home on a computer.

What you’ll need:
– a smartphone with the free iNaturalist app downloaded (or a camera to upload photos later)
– a free iNaturalist account
– curiosity and excitement to make observations

Check out the ‘Barn Beach Bioblitz on iNaturalist’ link below to view a map of the bioblitz area.