Bio Blitz – just what is that? If you Google it a bunch of interesting tidbits pop up, going back to 2007 and further. Indeed, Portland Parks and Recreation held a Bio Blitz in Forest Park in 2012 (here’s a video). According to National Geographic,
A BioBlitz is a 24-hour event in which teams of volunteer scientists, families, students, teachers, and other community members work together to find and identify as many species of plants, animals, microbes, fungi, and other organisms as possible
ORTWS Conservation Affairs is working to coordinate some Bio Blitz activities around the state. Are you spending too much time in the office? Help us all get more time in the field with critters! We are looking for locations and surveyor skills! Professionals and students alike are encouraged to participate, getting out to look for the wildlife we love, cross training on a species we might not get to work with, and honing skills. Property managers will benefit from a much more intensive inventory of species than a general assessment can yield.
The first step is to gather a list of your skills and properties in need. If you have a great wildlife survey skill that you are willing to share and/or have property that you would desperately like to have surveyed let us know! Please send your name and information to your conservation affairs co-chairs Todd Mabee and Leslie Bliss-Ketchum.