Near Lake City in Erie County, the 540 acre Erie Bluff State Park, which is Western PA Conservancy's most recent land acquisition, was the site of a bioblitz event Friday and Saturday, July 16-17, 2004. A bioblitz is a 24-hour mass inventory of a property to record as many species as possible. In the case of the Erie Bluff State Park bioblitz, more than 140 volunteers, including experts in various fields of study such as entomology (insects), ornithology (birds), botany (plants) and most other types of organisms, worked throughout the day and night to sample all habitats. After a group strategy session (pictured above) the scientists and their teams went afield from noon to noon, before compiling the results and making a report. Mist-nets were erected to capture bats at night; leaf-litter was sorted to discover land snails; swamps were penetrated to seek out wetland plants, and a fish-shocker helped inventory fishes.

The following results are only preliminary as the numbers will significantly change as specimens taken in the field are identified in the lab. Included are over 80 species of birds and 19 mammal species, including four species of bats captured in the mist-nets. Only 3 species of reptiles and 11 amphibian species were found. Five species of fish were found in the small tributary to Lake Erie named "Duck Run." The water in Elk Creek was too high, but the PA Fish and Boat Commission returned on Tuesday, July 20th, adding 11 new fish species. Botanists recorded 302 species of vascular plants and there were 20 different mosses, 5 liverworts, 6 lichens, and 94 fungi. The list of invertebrates included more than 80 species of aquatic invertebrates (insects, worms, mollusks, etc.), 360 species of terrestrial insects, 32 species of spiders, 4 harvestmen (daddy-long-legs), 1 pseudoscorpion, and 35 land snails. The final tally will undoubtedly increase greatly as the more difficult specimens are identified in the lab... stay tuned for the final results!

The Erie Bluffs bioblitz was carried out through a partnership between the PA Biological Survey, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and WPC. Individuals from other state and federal agencies, non-profits, universities, and museums participated in the event. There were also a number of volunteer naturalists who contributed greatly to the success of the event. Such an event draws attention to biodiversity, allows scientists and volunteers to meet and collaborate, and provides resource information for use in making management decisions about land, water and habitats.

Also pictured here is Duck Run on the property, biologists sorting through a sample of aquatic life, and the bird inventory team standing on the shore of Lake Erie as they search for all species.

E-mail Today's WPC Daily to a Friend!

Sign Up for WPC Daily