More than 200 participants made over 2,200 plant and animal observations and almost 3,000 identifications during the Sustainability Office’s fourth annual BioBlitz initiative from Sept. 21 to Sept. 25.
“Waterloo’s BioBlitz is always a great opportunity to explore campus with others, learn about the species that call our campuses home, and reap the benefits of spending time outdoors,” Sustainability Projects Manager Patricia Huỳnh, said to Imprint.
UW’s BioBlitz is an event where scientific professionals and community participants partake in various environmental exploration activities to identify and record as many species on campus as possible. Last week, guided walks led by professors, biologists, the Ecology Lab, and students took place across campus on paths and in the Environment buildings. “We are fortunate to have so many natural spaces on our campuses,” Huỳnh noted.
While some participants observed migratory birds near the Brubacher House on north campus, others went on tours identifying plants,moths, or bats in the nearby area. Other activities included an insect field exploration workshop, a lichen identification tour, and a constructed wetland tour, which all took place by EV3 near Ring Road. There was also a naturalized garden tour in the ENV and Arts gardens, along with a campus bird identification tour and campus trees in autumn survey near EV1. An aquatic ecology exploration of Laurel Creek occurred by the Health Services bridge.
A group of participants during BioBlitz. (Photo credit: Patricia Huynh)
Third-year planning student Meaghan Black led six participants on the campus tree inventory walk. Starting at the Davis Centre bus stop, her group made its way to the Peter Russell Rock Garden, then walked along the Two Row path before concluding at the Health Expansion building. “Trees are something that I love talking about. . . I think it’s important that a lot of people can learn and know [about tree health because]. . . we live amongst trees every day,” Black shared. She gained her knowledge of trees as an urban forestry research assistant co-op student with the Longbranch Neighbourhood Association during the spring term.
Black says that her group’s biggest takeaway from its walk is that many of UW’s trees are at risk from the urban lifestyles that come with campus life. For example, she noted that many of the trees are planted near impermeable surfaces like concrete, which makes it difficult for roots to access water, stunting plant growth. Some of the tree trunks Black and her group observed had human-made carvings or lawn mower scars. She explained that these markings can damage trees over time because “the outer layer of a tree is very much alive [and] is where a lot of water and nutrients are going through.”
Of the 200-plus BioBlitz participants, more than 200 of them were identifiers while almost 30 of them were observers. They made 2,230 observations and recorded over 800 species during the 5-day event. Included in the final species count were 444 plants, 213 insects, and 52 fungi. Among the 2,989 identifications, 1,567 of them were given a “leading” ID, meaning most participants corroborated an identification. In comparison, during last July’s BioBlitz, over 500 participants made more than 5,000 observations of over 1,000 species.
“With the help of members of our community, Waterloo’s annual BioBlitz has contributed to efforts to document hundreds of species on campus. This data collected through community science can be used for education and research, as well as help us track biodiversity over time,” Huỳnh explained.
