Minute Man National Historical Park (MMNHP) invites all ages to join distinguished naturalists on a quest to document as many species as possible during a BioBlitz event on Saturday, Sept. 22.
A BioBlitz brings together educators, scientists, naturalists, and the public to encourage outdoor exploration and enhance our understanding of biodiversity. The MMNHP event will focus on locating, identifying, and counting as many species as possible within the 1,038-acre park area in Concord, Lincoln, and Lexington. Participants will gain skills in identifying and recording species and a stronger connection to their natural environment.
World-renowned local naturalists Peter Alden and Edward O. Wilson initiated the Biodiversity Day concept in 1998 at Walden Pond, and included MMNHP within the study area. They repeated the event with dozens of experts in 2008, and collectively recorded over 2,700 species within a five-mile radius of Walden Pond.
Concord-Carlisle High School student Liam Beguhn initiated the current event to spotlight the area’s biodiversity on September 22 (National Public Lands Day) and to update the findings by using the iNaturalist app.
The MMNHP event starts in the morning at the North Bridge Visitor Center at 174 Liberty St. in Concord, where guides will begin quests at 8 a.m., 9 a.m., and 10 a.m. Each quest will focus on the guide’s expertise, which will include birds, plants, mammals, insects, reptiles, fungi, and more. After a break at noon (bring a bag lunch), it will continue at the Hartwell Tavern parking lot/park ranger station at 101 North Great Rd. in Lincoln. Guides will begin afternoon excursions from the parking lot at 2 p.m. and wrap up all quests by 4 p.m.
Data collected by participants who want to record findings using iNaturalist will be recorded on the app’s website, and prizes will be awarded to participants for numbers of identifications recorded in the park.
“Thousands of species are here in our community. This event will highlight the wonders of nature and inspire participants to better understand and protect biodiversity,” Alden said.
Questions about the project and program can be directed to Liam Beguhn via Margie Coffin Brown, the Park’s Natural & Cultural Resource Manager at 617-620-2942 or Margie_coffin_brown@nps.gov.
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