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National
Parks BioBlitz Takes Stock of Species in Parks
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Washington,
DC – June 2016 / Newsmaker Alert / During two intensive days of exploration
and documentation, the National
Parks BioBlitz, May 20-21, 2016, captured a vivid snapshot of the unique
plant and animal biodiversity in our national parks. The National
Park Service and National
Geographic event, sponsored by American Express, involved more than
120 national parks and tens of thousands of experts and citizen scientists
of all ages and backgrounds.
The
BioBlitz was part scientific endeavor, part outdoor classroom excursion
and part celebration of national natural heritage. Families, scientists,
school groups, and individuals swarmed parks, observing and recording as
many plant and animal species as possible within a 24-hour period.
“I
am thrilled that so many people became citizen scientists this weekend,”
said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. “Everyone had a
great time finding plants, amphibians, bugs, animals, birds, and even fossils
in parks throughout the country. Their discoveries make a difference and
will be used to establish baselines against which we can measure changes
in ecosystems.”
Highlights
include:
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An initial
scientific species count, of 6,986, with more than 60,000 observations
recorded during the two-day event and lead-up events in recent months.
Organizers expect this number to increase greatly over the next few months
as more species are identified and the final numbers tallied.
-
The National
Parks BioBlitz—Washington, D.C. was the cornerstone of the national event.
Nearly 300 scientists and experts led more than 2,600 students and thousands
of members of the general public in 13 of the National Capital Region’s
parks. As of the end of the weekend, more than 1,000 species were recorded.
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Channel
Islands National Park featured a live broadcast of an interactive dive
with renowned oceanographer and National Geographic Explorer Dr. Sylvia
Earle. The feed was featured online and enabled the public to follow the
exploration of one of the richest marine ecosystems in the world, the giant
kelp forest.
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At Cabrillo
National Monument, Green Abalone (Haliotis fulgens) was documented. For
the past thirty years, Abalone have faced substantial conservation concerns
due to overharvesting and disease. Their presence in the Cabrillo Rocky
Intertidal Zone can be described as ephemeral at best.
-
At Gettysburg
National Military Park, more than 750 school students identified 166 species,
including a 30-pound snapping turtle, in the park’s first ever BioBlitz.
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Knife
River Indian Villages National Historical Park conducted an ArcheoBlitz.
A centuries old bison tooth was found at Big Hidatsa Village, which was
occupied from about 1740 to 1850. DNA extracted from this tooth can provide
data on bison populations before their near-extinction at the end of the
19th century, a useful comparison for managers of modern herds.
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At Great
Smoky Mountain National Parks, experts teamed up with about 100 fifth graders.
Together they explored plants and insects and discovered nearly 200 species.
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At Weir
Farm National Historic Site, 375 school children joined more than 200 other
participants, and counted more than 340 species.
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Craters
of the Moon National Monument and Preserve conducted a lichen survey and
added several new species to their park list. One of those identified was
Xanthoria elegans. This species of lichen resided on the international
space station for eighteen months.
-
At Bandelier
National Monument, more than 100 researchers and volunteers conducted 17
inventories that included searches for terrestrial and aquatic invertebrates,
birds, reptiles and amphibians, plants, pollinators and bats. They made
877 iNaturalist observations and identified 361 species. The most observed
species was the Silver-haired bat.
This National
Parks BioBlitz was the 10th in a series of BioBlitzes hosted by the National
Park Service and the National Geographic Society. Since 2007, as part of
the run-up to the NPS Centennial, the two organizations have collaborated
to hostannual BioBlitzes in different national parks close to major urban
areas.
“Nine
years ago at the first National Geographic–National Park Service BioBlitz
in Rock Creek Park, we had about 1,000 people documenting species on paper,”
said National Geographic Society President and CEO Gary Knell. “This year,
for the National Park Service Centennial, tens of thousands of people have
joined forces at more than 120 parks for the first nationwide BioBlitz.
This massive effort to uncover the amazing natural resources in our parks
dovetails with National Geographic’s longtime commitment to exploring and
protecting our planet.”
“American
Express is committed to serving and preserving our nation’s parks and public
lands,” said American Express Foundation President Timothy J. McClimon.
“As we gear up for the National Park Service centennial, we are excited
to sponsor BioBlitz and empower volunteers across the country to discover
and celebrate the wealth of biodiversity in our national parks.”
American
Express is also a premier partner of the 2016 National Park Service centennial.
To learn more, visit amex.co/goparks.
The
National Parks BioBlitz used the iNaturalist app to deliver real-time information
on species finds. During BioBlitz, iNaturalist’s weekly record was beat
by more than 10,000 observations with a grand weekly total of over 64,800
observations in one week. Parks and partners shared their BioBlitz activities
via social media, using the hashtags #BioBlitz2016 and #FindYourPark. Many
parks broadcast portions of their events on social media sites such as
Periscope, Snapchat, and Facebook Live, engaging visitors from around the
world.
Verizon
provided financial and in-kind support to allow thousands of students participating
in the national capital region to have access to Verizon powered tablets
to document their species finds on iNaturalist. Southwest Airlines and
the Harold M. and Adeline S. Morrison Family Foundation also contributed
generously to the cornerstone event in and around Washington, D.C. Additional
nationwide collaborators included the National Park Foundation, the National
Park Trust, The Nature Fund, and many park-specific friends groups.
Additional
parks will conduct BioBlitz events throughout the National Park Service
Centennial. More information, including an interactive location map, is
available at natgeo.org/bioblitz.
About
the National Park Service
More
than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 410 national
parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local
history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at
www.NPS.gov,
on Facebook Facebook.com/nationalparkservice,
Twitter Twitter.com/natlparkservice,
and YouTube YouTube.com/nationalparkservice.
About
the National Geographic Society
The
National Geographic Society is a global nonprofit membership organization
driven by a passionate belief in the power of science, exploration and
storytelling to change the world. We fund hundreds of research and conservation
projects around the globe each year. With the support of our members and
donors, we work to inspire, illuminate and teach through scientific expeditions,
award-winning journalism, education initiatives and more. For more information,
visit www.nationalgeographic.org.
Media
Contacts:
Carol
Seitz
National
Geographic Society
202-247-0953
Kathy
Kupper (NPS)
Media
Relations
202-208-6843 |