Tag: bioblitz

Community science with the Georgian Bay Mnidoo Gamii Biosphere

Today’s blog was written by Discovery Program Project Coordinator Jessica Stillman.

This summer, Grundy Lake Provincial Park, Killbear Provincial Park, and The Massasauga Provincial Park collaborated with the Georgian Bay Mnidoo Gamii Biosphere (GBB) to host bioblitzes within the world’s largest freshwater archipelago.

What is a bioblitz? In short, it is a community science event for recording different species within a certain location and time.

For these events, park visitors, Friends members, and staff from both Ontario Parks and GBB came together to inventory living things by uploading them to iNaturalist.

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What’s a bioblitz?

When you first hear the word “bioblitz,” you might be a little confused. What does this strange word mean?

When you break the word down into smaller pieces, it becomes much easier to understand: “bio” means “life” and “blitz” means a  “sudden, energetic, and concerted effort, typically on a specific task.”

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Join our community of science

We’ve made the switch from citizen science to community science.

Here at Ontario Parks, we love it when our visitors can get involved in science.

From iNaturalist to Bumblebee Watch, eBird, bioblitzes, and more, volunteers help us to collect important information about our parks.

These efforts help us to understand how plant and animal populations are changing over time, and help us to discover previously unknown populations of rare species. They also allow us to react quickly if someone discovers an invasive species in a new area.

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A summer bioblitz at Lake Superior

Today’s post is brought to you by the natural heritage education staff at Lake Superior Provincial Park.

This past July, Lake Superior Provincial Park held a bioblitz in an effort to identify as many species as possible within the park boundaries. That is 160,810 ha of park land and water, abundant with life!

Our mission: to get to know our park, and teach park visitors how to be citizen scientists!

Continue reading A summer bioblitz at Lake Superior

IBAs of Ontario Parks: Turkey Point and the Norfolk Forest Complex IBA

Welcome to the August installment of “IBAs in provincial parks,” brought to you by Ontario IBA Coordinator Amanda Bichel of Bird Studies Canada.

Summer is a perfect time to talk about Turkey Point Provincial Park and the Norfolk Forest Complex IBA!

These forests are known for supporting a rich breeding bird community, as well as an astounding array of other species.

Continue reading IBAs of Ontario Parks: Turkey Point and the Norfolk Forest Complex IBA

Bioblitz at Murphys Point is fast approaching!

In celebration of Ontario Parks’ 125th anniversary, and with two practice runs for local schools already under their belt, the staff at Murphys Point Provincial Park are keen to invite members of the public to join them for their 2nd Annual Bioblitz on Saturday August 18.

Continue reading Bioblitz at Murphys Point is fast approaching!

Summer bioblitzes at Algonquin

In honour of our 125th anniversary, our oldest provincial park, Algonquin, is hosting a bioblitz series!

Join park naturalists for weekly programs where you will learn how to identify and inventory different species, as well as the importance of citizen science in protecting the biodiversity of our parks.

Continue reading Summer bioblitzes at Algonquin

Local schools blitz Murphys Point

This post comes to us from Mark Read, Interpretive Naturalist at Murphys Point Provincial Park.

Last month, two local schools took part in a mini bioblitz at Murphys Point, using their outdoor skills to explore, discover, and identify the various wildlife of the park.

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BioBlitz at Sleeping Giant

Team members from our Northwest Zone, including Barb Rees, Evan McCaul, Lesley Ng, Renée Lalonde, Laura Myers and Kyra Santin, combined to share the results of Sleeping Giant’s summer BioBlitz! 

Sleeping Giant Provincial Park isn’t just home to beautiful cliffs and hiking trails. The park also plays host to a diverse group of plants and animals.

Sleeping Giant celebrated this biodiversity with its very own two-day intensive BioBlitz from June 17 to 18.
Continue reading BioBlitz at Sleeping Giant