BioBlitz at Memorial Park Saturday

If you have ever wondered what it’s like to be a researcher or scientist in the field of animal and plant sciences, San Mateo County Parks’ BioBlitz at Memorial Park on Saturday, September 27, at 9 a.m. is the event for you.

San Mateo County Parks hosts it first BioBlitz in honor of Memorial County Park’s 90th year. It’s a great way to celebrate the history of the park while working with other citizen scientists to chronicle the living organisms that call Memorial Park home. In place of a sketchbook or compass, you use the technology that is built into your smartphone and the iNaturalist app at iNaturalist.org.

Join San Mateo County Parks, Save the Redwoods League, the California Academy of Sciences, Sequoia Audubon Society, Nerds for Nature, and the San Francisco Mycological Society on September 27 at the Huckleberry Flat Group Picnic Area where the BioBlitzing begins! From this location teams of citizen scientists will divide into groups to cover areas of the park with the goal of documenting as many life forms as possible within a three-hour time frame.

The fun continues during the wrap-up session when participants upload findings to iNaturalist and discuss with experts the different species found. Our wrap-up session will take place at the Pescadero Country Store, 251 Stage Road, Pescadero.

Participants should register for the event through Eventbrite and iNaturalist.org. The event is free, but there is a $6 vehicle fee.

To learn more about the BioBlitz see iNaturalist’s Tilden Nature Area BioBlitz, the National Geographic Explorers’ Golden Gate National Parks 2014 BioBlitz, and the Nerds for Nature BioBlitz page.

--Information and image from the San Mateo County Parks Department

--Image shows San Bruno Elfin Butterfly (Incisalia mossii bayensis)