National Geographic Society

Ten-year-old Joshua White participated in the BioBlitz with his grandmother, Joyce Jayson. It was Joshua's first visit to Rock Creek Park and his first experience working "in the field."

"I wanted to come out here because I didn't have anything to do at home except watch TV," Joshua said. "Then I got here and heard the speaker talking about animals like the snapping turtle and the king snake, and I wanted to try and find some animals."

Joshua and his grandmother headed out into the park, and the fourth-grader quickly made his first discovery: a tiger swallowtail butterfly.

"I found this leaf that looked like it was up in the air," Joshua said. "I got closer and it was a butterfly. I swooped the net up behind it and caught it!"

As excited as Joshua was, his grandmother was even more pleased by the day's outcome. "We read about the BioBlitz in the newspaper, and I knew that Joshua would like it," Jayson said. "He likes everything that's outside. He's at home out here."

Photograph of Joshua's discovery journal by Mark Christmas/NGS

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 11:00 AM

Photographer David Liittschwager shows a photographed beetle to the National Park Service's Ken Ferebee, mammals expert Marc Allard, and Sue Salmons and Dan Sealy of the National Park Service. For his unique macro-photography style, Liittschwager photographs live specimens in Petri dishes.

Photograph by Mark Christmas/NGS

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 11:34 AM

From a profile of the BioBlitz that ran in today's Washington Post: "There were caterpillars hiding under leaves, earthworms wriggling under rocks, scientists climbing in the treetops and spiders scrambling in the grass."

Read the complete article.

Photograph by Lois Raimondo/The Washington Post

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Species Count: 414

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 9:32 AM

One team of overnight owlers found luck last night with two species, the eastern screech owl and the barred owl. The owl team donned night-vision goggles and headed out into the park. Once in a likely spot, guide David Johnson of the Global Owl Project played owl calls loudly over a boombox, luring curious male owls out to confront the fake intruder.

The ploy worked to draw out four eastern screech owls and nine barred owls.

Photograph of an eastern screech owl by Mark Christmas

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Species Count: 388

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 7:22 AM

Over the last ten years, scientists and volunteers have catalogued thousands of species in BioBlitzes across the globe.

What's it like to be in the middle of a Blitz? As a Smithsonian magazine writer put it: "A BioBlitz is an event in which dozens of scientists fan out across some unlikely habitat, hell-bent on recording every species they can find, dead or alive, in a 24-hour period. ... They [are] prepared to dance like butterflies, sing like chickadees or do almost anything else this scavenger hunt required."

Read about a few past BioBlitzes:

Chattanooga, Tennessee (2007)

Potomac Gorge, Maryland (2006)

Boulder, Colorado (2004)

Central Park, New York (2003)

Hartford, Connecticut (1999)

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 4:14 AM

The clock has just struck 12, which means we are halfway through our 24-hour species inventory. The action has slowed down a little here at the park--but not much. Scientists are still identifying finds, a new crowd of BioBlitzers has arrived for a midnight Owl Prowl through Rock Creek Park, and some folks are enjoying a bonfire complete with marshmallows for roasting.

Above, a BioBlitz visitor tries out a puppet theater in Rock Creek Park's Nature Center. Photograph by NGS

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 12:16 AM

One of the bird teams reports they found 27 species in their foray into the park. Their finds included two male hummingbirds "thrusting and parrying" in a dispute, Baltimore orioles carrying nesting materials, wood ducks in a creek, forest thrushes, scarlet tanagers, and a bay-breasted warbler.

Photograph from nationalgeographic.com's Animals site of Baltimore oriole by George Grall

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Species Count: 277

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 8:48 PM

We're coming up on Hour Six of the BioBlitz. The first teams have come back in, and scientists are busy identifying and recording their finds. The second group of teams has headed out and will be back around 8 p.m., when the third wave will gear up to look for owls and bats in the park's darkness.

Unseasonably cool and damp weather has kept many species, especially insects, out of sight today, so researchers are hoping for better luck tomorrow.

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Species Count: 116

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 6:18 PM

Gary Hevel, entomologist and public information officer with the Smithsonian Institution, speaks with schoolchildren about his mounted insect collection. He's collected more than 4,000 species in his own backyard in Silver Spring, Maryland, including a new species of moth and a few wasp species that may be new to science.

Photograph by Mark Christmas/NGS

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Species count: 27

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 4:10 PM

What's it like at a BioBlitz? In a word, busy.

White tents near the park's Nature Center house tables of scientists and researchers, who will help participants and volunteers log their finds.

Groups of scientists and researchers are leading teams of participants out in the park, recording each species they encounter. There are teams for birds, fish, mammals, amphibians, fungi, aquatic insects, plants, and more.

Once the teams come back in, they'll add their counts to the main species tally. The hope is that we'll find more than 1,000 species here over the next 24 hours.

Also at BioBlitz "Base Camp" are representatives and exhibits from groups such as the Virginia Herpetological Society, the Student Conservation Association, the Nature Conservancy, National Geographic's My Wonderful World campaign, and, of course, the National Park Service.

Check back soon for our next update!

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Species count: 5

Photograph by Mark Christmas/NGS

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 1:45 PM

We're just a few days away from kicking off the 2007 BioBlitz in Washington, D.C.'s Rock Creek Park!

What's BioBlitz? It's an exciting 24-hour event in which teams of scientists, volunteers, and community members join forces to find, identify, and learn about as many local species as possible. The Washington, D.C., BioBlitz will be held May 18-19 at Rock Creek Park, home to a variety of plants and animals, including deer, coyotes, owls, raccoons, and more.

Anyone--parents, teachers, kids, and community members--can come out and take part in the species inventory anytime during the 24 hours of the BioBlitz. (It's best to register in advance.) There will also be special exhibits and programs showcasing the importance of biodiversity.

The 2007 Rock Creek BioBlitz is a partnership between the National Geographic Society and Rock Creek National Park. It is the first of ten annual BioBlitzes to be conducted by National Geographic in different urban parks.

See you at the park!

P.S. Check this blog often during the BioBlitz--we'll post news and photos of great finds.

POSTED BY NANCY GUPTON/BIOBLITZ TEAM AT 11:40 AM