Scientists, just plain folk, go batty for Bioblitz

The bat study begins at 8:30 p.m., followed by insect collection at 9:30. Bird watching starts at 6 the next morning, and plant study begins at 2.

That final study will culminate a frenzied day during which hundreds of scientists, researchers and amateur biologists will observe, classify and record as many plants and animals as they can within 24 hours at a Carver County site.

Welcome to Minnesota Bioblitz 2008, part of a national effort to bring science to the masses while also helping parks and nature preserves create a database of their species.

This year's event, the fifth to be staged in the state, will be held at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge near Carver. It will start at 5 p.m. June 13 and conclude at 5 p.m. the next day.

As many as 500 people, the vast majority of them amateur volunteers, are expected to work for hours collecting, classifying and recording species at the refuge.

"What we would like to do is make sure that what is supposed to be here is here," said Susan Weller of the University of Minnesota's Bell Museum, organizer of the event. "We do these surveys to find out what we don't know about our back yards."

Bioblitzes have been held periodically around the country since 1966, growing in popularity each year. National Geographic and the U.S. National Park Service are planning a series of 10 Bioblitzes around the country -- one a year for the next 10 years -- leading up to the Park Service's 100th anniversary.

Minnesota had its first Bioblitz in 2004, when more than 750 species were counted at Tamarack Nature Center in White Bear Township. More than 100 people helped identify spiders, insects, plants, birds and mammals.

The number of participants and the number of species identified have been growing. The events have even led to the discovery of several species not previously documented in Minnesota.

Last year's Minnesota Bioblitz was at the Warner Nature Center in Marine on the St. Croix, where nearly 500 adults and children showed up to help the scientists. More than 1,100 species were identified.

Fun science

While there is a serious scientific purpose to Bioblitz, organizers said the event is also designed to be fun, to get more of the public involved in science. That is why organizers move Bioblitz each year to a different location.

Vicki Sherry, a wildlife biologist with the Minnesota Wildlife Refuge, helped with the Bioblitz at the Bloomington refuge in 2005, where as planes took off and landed at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport nearly 1,000 species were collected and charted.

Sherry said this year's event features a more isolated location. Even the Rapid Lakes Education Center isn't open yet -- it won't be completed until late summer or early fall.

The information collected is used by the parks and wildlife refuge centers to better manage their resources.

"We don't know exactly what we have," Sherry said. "So it's nice to have so many people come in and help."