Last updated: August 22, 2018
Article
Biodiversity Discovery in National Parks
By the editor and the NPS Biological Resource Management Division
THE FOLLOWING MAP locates national parks that have under taken biological diversity discovery research and monitoring work since around 1996. Many of these activities were funded, organized, and carried out by the parks and their partners, and many involved public participation. The activities com monly focused on understudied taxa such as insects, fungi, and other groups of invertebrates and nonvascular plants. The information produced by this work augments the systematic and program-funded vertebrate and vascular plant inventories led by the NPS Inventory and Monitoring Program that began in the 1990s.
The map also denotes the types of biodiversity discovery activities conducted. This includes one-time and independent taxonomic investigations. More and more, however, biological survey work is being combined with an opportunity to engage the public in meaningful and satisfying park stewardship experiences. These biologically focused public activities are flexible in scope and design and require special planning. They encompass relatively small and easily managed park inventories focused on particular taxa or habitats, larger-scale collection and festival-style events such as the NPS– National Geographic Society BioBlitzes, the more compre hensive and longer-term AllTaxa Biodiversity Inventories, and coordinated, multipark sur veys and related research.
The driving distance between parks and the nearest U.S. city with a population of 250,000 or more is illustrated too. Five of the 119 parks on the map are located in a city of this size and another 49 are within a 100-mile (161 km) drive—a reasonable day trip—of such a city. Thus nearly half of the parks on the map are relatively close to population centers, which underscores the ability of parks to appeal to urban and suburban residents to participate in these types of events. Developing the map was not without challenges. Criteria for what constitutes biodiversity discovery have not been defined precisely and reporting of these activities varies, com plicating the synthesis. Additionally, most of the work has not been fully documented or analyzed from a national perspective. We have chosen to be inclusive. Fifteen parks have plans for a “bat blitz,” “paleoblitz,” or camera-based activity later this year. Likewise, four additional parks plan to carry out drag onfly larvae sampling in October 2014. They are not shown on the map. because biodiver sity discovery is a scalable, cumulative process. Small, one time, and less formal activities have the potential to inform our knowledge of biodiversity, as do large, coordinated, and repeated events. Plus, participation in citizen science–oriented activities is not limited to taxonomists or other scientists; anyone can take part, make a discovery, and help bring meaning to an observation. Nevertheless, we may have overlooked some activities for lack of knowledge, for example breeding bird surveys, Christmas bird counts, and less publicized inventories.
The parks on the list are cross-referenced with the map grid for ease of location. We invite you to review this online list and improve it by sharing news of your park’s biodiversity discovery activities that we missed, adding detail to those that are sparse, and clarifying misinterpretations.
The story of biodiversity discovery in our national parks is exciting and continues to unfold. Small and large parks across the National Park System increasingly are taking part in these scientific activities that capture the public’s imagination and enthusiasm. Moreover, urban and suburban residents are participating in biological surveys and biodiversity conservation, concepts typically asso ciated with textbooks and more remote parks. The graph illustrates that these events have proliferated since the first bioblitz was held at Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens in Washing ton, D.C., in 1996, and particularly since the NPS Call to Action item 7: “Next Generation Stewards” was announced in 2011. Numbering 109 in the last four years, biodiversity discovery activities are increasing our knowledge of park biota and providing educational and park bonding experiences for a multitude of volunteers and park visitors.
In biodiversity discovery, a rich and dynamic enterprise is taking shape in our parks, and with continued focus and resources, there is potential to do more. For the onetime, independent, or less formal inventories an opportunity exists to build on the information they produced and put it into a broader, more complete context by planning follow-up activities that address knowledge gaps and involve the public. Parks that have already carried out an activity can add to their knowledge of park biota and increase their public outreach by tweaking and repeating the events. Parks that have yet to get involved can draw from the considerable experience of those that have already done so and design an activity that meets their needs and matches their goals.
Biodiversity discovery is a concept in shared stewardship, and it seems to be working. If the trend continues, particularly after the NPS centennial celebration in 2016, it would not be surprising to see another 50–100 national parks plan and carry out a biodiversity discovery event over the next 5–10 years. Considering the recent growth in this enterprise and the potential for more, we may well want to revisit this topic in Park Science around that time to continue to gauge our progress.
THE FOLLOWING MAP locates national parks that have under taken biological diversity discovery research and monitoring work since around 1996. Many of these activities were funded, organized, and carried out by the parks and their partners, and many involved public participation. The activities com monly focused on understudied taxa such as insects, fungi, and other groups of invertebrates and nonvascular plants. The information produced by this work augments the systematic and program-funded vertebrate and vascular plant inventories led by the NPS Inventory and Monitoring Program that began in the 1990s.
The map also denotes the types of biodiversity discovery activities conducted. This includes one-time and independent taxonomic investigations. More and more, however, biological survey work is being combined with an opportunity to engage the public in meaningful and satisfying park stewardship experiences. These biologically focused public activities are flexible in scope and design and require special planning. They encompass relatively small and easily managed park inventories focused on particular taxa or habitats, larger-scale collection and festival-style events such as the NPS– National Geographic Society BioBlitzes, the more compre hensive and longer-term AllTaxa Biodiversity Inventories, and coordinated, multipark sur veys and related research.
The driving distance between parks and the nearest U.S. city with a population of 250,000 or more is illustrated too. Five of the 119 parks on the map are located in a city of this size and another 49 are within a 100-mile (161 km) drive—a reasonable day trip—of such a city. Thus nearly half of the parks on the map are relatively close to population centers, which underscores the ability of parks to appeal to urban and suburban residents to participate in these types of events. Developing the map was not without challenges. Criteria for what constitutes biodiversity discovery have not been defined precisely and reporting of these activities varies, com plicating the synthesis. Additionally, most of the work has not been fully documented or analyzed from a national perspective. We have chosen to be inclusive. Fifteen parks have plans for a “bat blitz,” “paleoblitz,” or camera-based activity later this year. Likewise, four additional parks plan to carry out drag onfly larvae sampling in October 2014. They are not shown on the map. because biodiver sity discovery is a scalable, cumulative process. Small, one time, and less formal activities have the potential to inform our knowledge of biodiversity, as do large, coordinated, and repeated events. Plus, participation in citizen science–oriented activities is not limited to taxonomists or other scientists; anyone can take part, make a discovery, and help bring meaning to an observation. Nevertheless, we may have overlooked some activities for lack of knowledge, for example breeding bird surveys, Christmas bird counts, and less publicized inventories.
The parks on the list are cross-referenced with the map grid for ease of location. We invite you to review this online list and improve it by sharing news of your park’s biodiversity discovery activities that we missed, adding detail to those that are sparse, and clarifying misinterpretations.
The story of biodiversity discovery in our national parks is exciting and continues to unfold. Small and large parks across the National Park System increasingly are taking part in these scientific activities that capture the public’s imagination and enthusiasm. Moreover, urban and suburban residents are participating in biological surveys and biodiversity conservation, concepts typically asso ciated with textbooks and more remote parks. The graph illustrates that these events have proliferated since the first bioblitz was held at Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens in Washing ton, D.C., in 1996, and particularly since the NPS Call to Action item 7: “Next Generation Stewards” was announced in 2011. Numbering 109 in the last four years, biodiversity discovery activities are increasing our knowledge of park biota and providing educational and park bonding experiences for a multitude of volunteers and park visitors.
In biodiversity discovery, a rich and dynamic enterprise is taking shape in our parks, and with continued focus and resources, there is potential to do more. For the onetime, independent, or less formal inventories an opportunity exists to build on the information they produced and put it into a broader, more complete context by planning follow-up activities that address knowledge gaps and involve the public. Parks that have already carried out an activity can add to their knowledge of park biota and increase their public outreach by tweaking and repeating the events. Parks that have yet to get involved can draw from the considerable experience of those that have already done so and design an activity that meets their needs and matches their goals.
Biodiversity discovery is a concept in shared stewardship, and it seems to be working. If the trend continues, particularly after the NPS centennial celebration in 2016, it would not be surprising to see another 50–100 national parks plan and carry out a biodiversity discovery event over the next 5–10 years. Considering the recent growth in this enterprise and the potential for more, we may well want to revisit this topic in Park Science around that time to continue to gauge our progress.
National Parks and Biodiversity Discovery, 1996-2014.
Acadia NP (O2)6,7
2003–20141 | annual 24 hr targeted taxa bioblitzes | ants, aquatic insects, beetles, butterflies, flies, macrofungi, moths, spiders, true bugs, other insects | amateur entomologists and mycologists, school groups, public, academic institutions, state government, naturalist organization | 20 species of butterflies, 300 species of moths, 226 species of aquatic insects
ongoing5 | hawk migration observation | volunteers in conjunction with Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Apostle Islands NL (K2)6
Arkansas Post NMem (K5)
2012–20134 | biodiversity fair | mammals, herpetofauna, nighttime species | I&M network scientists, public
Assateague Island NS (N4)6
20125 | science field day/survey | marsh and bay biota, mole crabs, water quality | educators, schoolchildren
Bandelier NM (H5)7
1992–20145 | surveys, monitoring | ground-dwelling arthropods: beetles, crickets, grasshoppers, selected true bugs, spiders and other arachnids; species-habitat associations and shifts because of climate change | 300 species | University of New Mexico
Bering Land Bridge NPres (B3)
20134,5 | science engagement through videography | loons | high school students, educational and nongovernmental partners
Big Bend NP (I6)7
Big Cypress NPres (N7)7
Big Thicket NPres (K6)6
2006–20143,4 | ATBI, educational fairs and programs, seminars | amphibians, aquatic true bugs and ectoparasites, butterflies and moths, fishes, fungi, lichens, mussels, orchids, pseudoscorpions, slime molds, tardigrades, terrestrial arthropods, vascular and nonvascular plants | professional scientists, public, students | 2,761 species, 103 new to park, 1 (crayfish) new to science
Biscayne NP (N7)6
20102,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | marine species focus | with National Geographic Society, scientists, educators, public | 824 species tallied, 324 new listings for park
Blue Ridge Parkway (M4)6
Boston Harbor Islands NRA (O2)6
2013–20145 | 4.5 hr pilot photo voucher bioblitz | flora and fauna | 13 public | 248 photo insect observations; 52 species, 23 new for Thompson Island
2005–20103 ATBI invertebrates, intertidal species, mammals entomologists, professional and citizen scientists, high school students, academic partners | 1,777 species
Bryce Canyon NP (G4)6
Buck Island Reef NM (F7)6
Canaveral NS (N6)6
Canyon de Chelly NM (H4)
2005–20073,5 | inventories, ATBI | arthropods and other taxa | inventories of three habitats: mixed conifer forest, pinyon-juniper woods along canyon rim, riparian woodlands | volunteers, schoolchildren, professional scientists
Canyonlands NP (G4)
5 | survey | insects | entomologist
Cape Cod NS (O2/3)6,7
Cape Krusenstern NM (B3)6
Capitol Reef NP (H4)
1998–20055 | inventories | rare plants | NPS, BLM, and other agencies; Canon USA grant Carlsbad Caverns NP
2006–ongoing5 | survey | moths | lepidopterist
Catoctin Mountain Park (N4)
2008–20135 | inventories | bees (93 species), damselflies and dragonflies (28 species), ground-beetles (103 species) | contractors | two odonates of conservation concern, 42 bees new to county, 1 bee new to Maryland, park insect list expanded from 364 to 588 species
Cedar Breaks NM (G4)
2013–20141,4 | weekend “bioblast” | bat, bird, bug surveys | live identifications only, no specimens collected; educational fair to celebrate biodiversity at 10,000 feet; public participation; local universities, retired entomologist
Channel Islands NP (F4)6,7
2009–20145 | inventories | ants, beetles, lichens | local taxonomists, in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy
Chattahoochee River NRA (M5)
20115 | inventory | pollinators (bees) | principal investigator, academic and federal partners | 8 species new to state, 1 new to science
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal NHP (N4)
20141 | bioblitz | invasive species
20061 | 30 hr bioblitz | algae, amphibians, arachnids, bryophytes, fungi, insects, reptiles, select flowering plants, slime molds | with The Nature Conservancy
Chickasaw NRA (J5)7
20111,4 | 24 hr bioblitz, educational programs | 800 species | 40 scientists
Chiricahua NM (H5)8
Colorado NM (H4)6
multiple years5,6 | survey | insects | university researcher
Congaree NP (M5)
1995–present1 | ~1 hr training followed by 3–4 hr guided observation | birds, butterflies, moths | naturalist partners, citizen scientists (average 75 per year)
2006–20071 | spiderblitz, three 3 hr sessions | arachnids | professional scientist, public
5 | survey | freshwater mussels | professional scientists, conservation partner volunteers
Coronado NMem (GH5)8
Crater Lake NP (F2)
20141 | 24 hr bioblitz | moths and butterflies | entomologists, public
Craters of the Moon NM and NPres (G2/3)
20145 | inventory | pikas and natural sounds | citizen scientists
Cumberland Island NS (M6)6
Cuyahoga Valley NP (M3)7
Death Valley NP (F4)6
2007–20081 | bioblitz | invertebrates | taxonomists, school groups
Denali NP and NPres (C4)6,7
Dinosaur NM (H3)
multiple years5 | survey | insects, other arthropods | entomologist
Ebey’s Landing NHR (F1)
20045 | monthly collecting forays (April, May, June, September) | vascular plants | professional and amateur botanists, public
El Malpais NM (H5)
2007–20085 | ATBI | cave arthropods, bats, and other vertebrates | university researcher through CESU | 59 arthropods, 3 bats, 3 other vertebrates; many arthropod species new to science
Fire Island NS (O3)6
Fort Bowie NHS (H5)8
Fort Donelson NB (L4)
2013–20145 | targeted inventories, various techniques | plants and all animal species: photography; owls: audio calling; bats: echolocation recording; nighttime biota: infrared photography and night-vision scopes; bioluminescent species: UV illumination and high-intensity chemical lighting | volunteers, citizen scientists
Fort Matanzas NM (N6)6
Fort Pulaski NM (N5)
20131 | 12 hr bioblitz | nonnative plants | park staff, 27 public (high school students, area naturalists) | new exotic species identified
Fort Washington Park (N4)
ongoing5 | video and direct observation monitoring | bald eagles | citizen scientists
Fossil Butte NM (H3)6
Gateway NRA (N3)6
2007–2008,1 20101 | bioblitzes, ATBI | all taxa, 3 focal areas | scientists, 50 preregistered public
George Washington Birthplace NM (N4)6
2007–2009,1,3 20121,3 | bioblitzes, ATBI | arthropods, including terrestrial and aquatic insects, birds, fungi, vascular and nonvascular plants | professional and amateur scientists, partners, schools | 377 arthropod species identified
George Washington Carver NM (K4)
20131,4 | bioblitz | aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, small mammals, vascular plants, water mites | 4 professional scientists, 20 volunteers; 15 attended a related educational program | 141 species, 89 of which were new to park
George Washington Memorial Parkway (N4)
2006–20141,3 | 30 hr bioblitz, ATBI | algae, amphibians, arachnids, bryophytes, fungi, insects (including microwasps), reptiles, select flowering plants, slime molds | students, 59 citizen naturalists, academic institutions, museum | 378 genera (comprising 377 species) of insects
Glacier NP (H1)6
ongoing5 | focal taxa inventories | butterflies, diatoms, ferns, mayflies, mollusks, mycobacteria, vascular plants
Glen Canyon NRA (H4)
20091 | bioblitz | animals, plants | professional and amateur scientists | with The Nature Conservancy
20045 | surveys | amphibians, arthropods, reptiles, small mammals, vascular and nonvascular plants | professional scientists
Golden Gate NRA (E3)7
20142,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society
Grand Canyon NP (G4)
20075 | inventory | ground-dwelling arthropods | professional scientist
1999–20045 | surveys | aquatic annelids | park staff, professional scientists, public
~20045 | surveys | amphibians, arthropods, reptiles, small mammals, vascular and nonvascular plants | professional scientists
2001–20035 | inventory | terrestrial and riparian invertebrates | professional scientist | 1,127 taxa collected
Grand Portage NM (K2)7
Grand Teton NP (H2/3)6
20045 | surveys
Great Basin NP (G4)6,7
2009,1 2011–20131 | annual 24 hr targeted taxa bioblitzes | arachnids (2 orders and several families new to park, white cave mite may be new to science), bees and wasps (65 species), beetles, flies (47 families, 19 species new to park) | professional and amateur scientists, public, volunteers | average 60 participants per year
Great Sand Dunes NP and NPres (I4)7
5 | survey | insects | entomologist
Great Smoky Mountains NP (M4/5)6,7
1998–present3,4 | ATBI, grant-funded projects involving TWiGs, bioblitzes, educational programs, workshops | ~130 focal taxa projects over 17 years, including algae, annelids (including oligochaeta), ants, aphids, aquatic bugs, bacteria (hemlock, plant, soil, waterborne), beetles (leaf, long-horned, wood), butterflies, cave and karst biota, crickets, diatoms, dry cliff plants, elk stomach biota, ferns and fern viruses, fish, flies (biting, bloodsucking, crane-, horse-, moth-, tephritid), flat worms, forest litter, freshwater invertebrates, fungi and microfungi (including pyrenomycetes), grasshoppers, hemlock insects, homoptera, hymenoptera (including wasps), insect viruses, internal bird parasites, leeches, lichens, microspore parasites, mosquitoes, moths (clearwing, micro-, noctuidae, owl-), pauropoda, planthoppers/leafhoppers, pollinators, slime molds (including myxomycetes), soil mites, spiders, springtails, stream microbes, tardigrades, thysanoptera, tree-canopy life, vascular plants, violets, viruses (plant), waterborne spores, water mites | partner-led, long-term study; researchers; volunteers; student participation through research learning center; public events | 18,038 species total; 7,636 species new to park, 923 new to science | 400+ participants in 2013
Indiana Dunes NL (L3)6,7
ongoing5 | monitoring, counts | birds, plants of concern | 21 citizens, area naturalists | 52 bird species tallied
20092,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society | more than 1,200 species tallied
Isle Royale NP (L2)6
Jean Lafitte NHP and Pres (L6)7
20132,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | 458 species tallied | with National Geographic Society, 1,500 adults, 1,500 children, 100 scientists | Louisiana milk snake, mud minnow
John Day Fossil Beds NM (F2)7
John Muir NHS (E3)
2011–20135 | phenology monitoring | 50 high school students
Joshua Tree NP (FG5)
2011–20131 | 36 hr “biodiversity hunts” | terrestrial, aquatic, and aerial insects at park oases | university taxonomists and students, local naturalists, public education programs | range of 40–105 citizen scientists/event | new families, genera, and species to park
1994–present5 | checklist updates, counts, inventories, surveys | amphibians, breeding birds, butterflies, lichens, mammals, including bats and rodents, reptiles, terrestrial arthropods, including insects, vascular plants | park staff, academic institutions
1968–present5 | Christmas bird count | National Audubon Society
1991,5 1993,5 1999–20015 | surveys | bats | UCLA, Bat Conservation Int’l
Katmai NP and NPres (B5)7
Kenai Fjords NP (C5)6
Kings Canyon NP (F4)
2014 | inventory5 | DNA analysis of harvestmen (arachnid)
ongoing5 | Christmas bird count
2002–20045 | inventory | cave invertebrates | contractor | about 30 new species (combined with those reported for Sequoia NP)
5 | roadside acoustic surveys | bats
Knife River Indian Villages NHS (J2)7
Kobuk Valley NP (B3)9
Lake Clark NP and NPres (C5)6,7
Lewis and Clark NHP (F1)
20121 | bioblitz | macroinvertebrates | 300 participants
Mammoth Cave NP (L4)7
Manassas NBP (N4)
1995–20145 | annual breeding bird surveys | birds, grasslands, shrublands | local Audubon chapter | designation as Important Bird Area, 10 species of regional conservation concern; butterflies, bees, plants also documented
Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP (N/O2)7
2013–20145 | Atlas of Life field day, pilot digital documentation | bees, birds, moths, plants | 40 workshop/program participants | 90 observations/ photographs by smartphone submitted to iNaturalist
Mesa Verde NP (H4)
1999–20075 | invertebrates and other arthropods | university entomologists | state range extensions, pinned collection
inventory5 | spiders | fire-burned areas | museum partner
inventory5 | ground-dwelling arthropods, spiders | comparison of burned and unburned pinyon-juniper forest | graduate student
Mississippi NRRA (K2)
2011–20131 | annual 24 hr focal-area bioblitzes | birds, fish, fungi, insects, mammals, plants | 100 participants in 2013, local university and museum | 322 species in 2013
Mojave NPres (G4)6
Monocacy NB (N4)7
Mount Rainier NP (F1)7
2004–20075 | annual forays at different park locations | vascular plants | botanists, public
survey5 | caddisflies, mayflies, stoneflies | entomologist
Muir Woods NM (E3)
20142,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | diverse taxa | with National Geographic Society
National Capital Parks (Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens) (N4)7
19961 | 24 hr bioblitz | NPS and USGS scientists
Niobrara NSR (J3)7
North Cascades NP (F1)6,7
ongoing5 | inventories | insects, lichens | independent researchers
2002–20075 | annual forays at different park locations | vascular plants | botanists, public
Ocmulgee NM (M5)
20131 | 2-day butterfly bioblitz | 480 participants | butterflies (28 species), dragonflies (5 species) | field identifications only (i.e., specimens not collected)
Olympic NP (F1)7
20083 | ATBI | fungi, insects, lichens, liverworts, microbes, mosses, spiders | before large-scale Elwha watershed restoration | park staff, academic institutions
Organ Pipe Cactus NM (G5)6
Ozark NSR (K4)7
Pecos NHP (I5)7
Petrified Forest NP (G5)6
Pictured Rocks NL (L2)6,7
Pipe Spring NM (G4)
2011–20124,5 | surveys, educational programs | bats, especially migratory species | academic partner | 18 species identified, 600 public participants
Piscataway Park (N4)
2013–20144,5 | videography, educational programs | bald eagles
Point Reyes NS (E3)6
2002–20141,5 | 24 hr bioblitzes, counts, forays, grants, 2- to 3-day inventories | algae, benthic invertebrates, crabs, diatoms, eelgrass, fish, fungi, intertidal biota, invasive species, lichens, mollusks, oysters, phytoplankton, sea squirts, shellfish, stream butterflies | taxonomists, students, 15–100 public and scientists per year depending on event
Pu‘uhonua o Hönaunau NHP (B7)7
Redwood NP (E2/3)6
Rock Creek Park (N4)
20072,4 | large 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | amphibians, aquatic insects, birds, fish, fungi, mammals, microbes, plants, reptiles, and terrestrial invertebrates (including insects) | with National Geographic Society | more than 650 species tallied
Rocky Mountain NP (I3)6,7
20122,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society, 5,000 public, schoolchildren, scientists, partners | 490 species total, 138 new to park (including 2 mammals)
2008–20091 | 2-day mycoblitz | fungi | professional and citizen scientists, local naturalist organization
2008–20095 | waterblitz | water sampling at 168 and 140 park locations, respectively | scientists, public
survey5 | caddisflies, mayflies, stoneflies | entomologist
Saguaro NP (G5)
2012–20145 | student monitoring of 10,000 saguaro cacti and other plants and animals
20112,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society, 5,500 public, schoolchildren, scientists, partners | 859 species tallied, 400 new to park, 1 may be new to science
Saint Croix NSR (K2)7
Saint-Gaudens NHS (O2)7
San Juan Island NHP (F1)6
20141 | 2-day bioblitz | all taxa | students to help run event
Sand Creek Massacre NHS (I4)
5 | survey | insects | entomologist
Santa Monica Mountains NRA (F5)6,7
2009–20144 | annual biodiversity festival (1.5 days) | 2,000 people
20082,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society, 2,000 public, schoolchildren, scientists, partners | more than 1,700 species tallied
Sequoia NP (F4)
20145 | inventory | DNA analysis of harvestmen (insect)
ongoing5 | Christmas bird count
2002–20045 | inventory | cave invertebrates | contractor | about 30 new species (combined with those reported for Kings Canyon NP)
5 | roadside acoustic surveys | bats
Shenandoah NP (N4)7
Sleeping Bear Dunes NL (L2)6
Tallgrass Prairie NPres (J4)
2009–20135 | annual count | butterflies | 70 participants | 2013: 50 species (3,070 specimens), 5 species new to park
Timpanogos Cave NM (H3)6
Timucuan EHP (M6)6,7
Upper Delaware SRR (N3)
2013–20141,4 | 24 hr bioblitz | all taxa | 2013: 50 scientists, amateur naturalists, 25 volunteers, 250 educational program attendees | 1,024 species in 2013
Valley Forge NHP (N3)
20141,5 | “Summer of Bugs” (two 24 hr bioblitzes and a summerlong “photoblitz”) | terrestrial invertebrates | university partner with public participation | catalog bugs present in two seasons; includes macrophotography workshop and use of iNaturalist to log photos
20095 | “Crayfish Corps” | inventory and manual removal of nonnative rusty crayfish | volunteers from schools, summer camps, corporate groups, conservation organizations, families, park neighbors | native-to-nonnative crayfish ratio is 4:1
20035 | inventory | crayfish | 1 undescribed species and 1 new to state
Voyageurs NP (K2)7
Wolf Trap NPPA (N4)
20133,5 | photo inventory, ATBI | birds, insects (including pollinators: bees, butterflies, moths), plants | volunteer and federal biologist, professional and volunteer naturalists, public, local naturalist organizations | 100 bird species, thousands of photo insect and plant observations
Wrangell–St. Elias NP (D4/5)6,9
Wupatki NM (G4)
2012–ongoing5 | ATBI cave arthropods, bats, and other vertebrates | university researcher through CESU | 1 bat and at least 2 arthropod species new to science
Yellowstone NP (H2)6,7
20091 | 24 hr bioblitz, public event | various taxa | taxonomic working groups, public
2007–20091,3 | aquatic molecular ATBI | aquatic DNA of Yellowstone Lake, various taxa | largest study of environmental DNA: 7 billion base pairs of DNA sequenced | academic institutions
Yosemite NP (F4)7
2007–20143 | ATBI with annual targeted taxa and habitats | bryophytes, caves, cliff lichens, high-elevation lakes | park staff, taxonomists, contractor, American Alpine Club | 500 lichen species new to park, some new to Sierra Nevada and North America, a few new to science; more than 300 bryophyte species identified
2004–20105 | inventory | vertebrates | park, academic, and federal scientists | repeat of early 1900s Grinnell Survey
2002–20045 | inventory | cave invertebrates | contractor | 1 new species
Yucca House NM (H4)
1 year5 | survey | insects | entomologist
Yukon-Charley Rivers NPres (D3/4)9
Zion NP (G4)6
2003–20141 | annual 24 hr targeted taxa bioblitzes | ants, aquatic insects, beetles, butterflies, flies, macrofungi, moths, spiders, true bugs, other insects | amateur entomologists and mycologists, school groups, public, academic institutions, state government, naturalist organization | 20 species of butterflies, 300 species of moths, 226 species of aquatic insects
ongoing5 | hawk migration observation | volunteers in conjunction with Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Apostle Islands NL (K2)6
Arkansas Post NMem (K5)
2012–20134 | biodiversity fair | mammals, herpetofauna, nighttime species | I&M network scientists, public
Assateague Island NS (N4)6
20125 | science field day/survey | marsh and bay biota, mole crabs, water quality | educators, schoolchildren
Bandelier NM (H5)7
1992–20145 | surveys, monitoring | ground-dwelling arthropods: beetles, crickets, grasshoppers, selected true bugs, spiders and other arachnids; species-habitat associations and shifts because of climate change | 300 species | University of New Mexico
Bering Land Bridge NPres (B3)
20134,5 | science engagement through videography | loons | high school students, educational and nongovernmental partners
Big Bend NP (I6)7
Big Cypress NPres (N7)7
Big Thicket NPres (K6)6
2006–20143,4 | ATBI, educational fairs and programs, seminars | amphibians, aquatic true bugs and ectoparasites, butterflies and moths, fishes, fungi, lichens, mussels, orchids, pseudoscorpions, slime molds, tardigrades, terrestrial arthropods, vascular and nonvascular plants | professional scientists, public, students | 2,761 species, 103 new to park, 1 (crayfish) new to science
Biscayne NP (N7)6
20102,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | marine species focus | with National Geographic Society, scientists, educators, public | 824 species tallied, 324 new listings for park
Blue Ridge Parkway (M4)6
Boston Harbor Islands NRA (O2)6
2013–20145 | 4.5 hr pilot photo voucher bioblitz | flora and fauna | 13 public | 248 photo insect observations; 52 species, 23 new for Thompson Island
2005–20103 ATBI invertebrates, intertidal species, mammals entomologists, professional and citizen scientists, high school students, academic partners | 1,777 species
Bryce Canyon NP (G4)6
Buck Island Reef NM (F7)6
Canaveral NS (N6)6
Canyon de Chelly NM (H4)
2005–20073,5 | inventories, ATBI | arthropods and other taxa | inventories of three habitats: mixed conifer forest, pinyon-juniper woods along canyon rim, riparian woodlands | volunteers, schoolchildren, professional scientists
Canyonlands NP (G4)
5 | survey | insects | entomologist
Cape Cod NS (O2/3)6,7
Cape Krusenstern NM (B3)6
Capitol Reef NP (H4)
1998–20055 | inventories | rare plants | NPS, BLM, and other agencies; Canon USA grant Carlsbad Caverns NP
2006–ongoing5 | survey | moths | lepidopterist
Catoctin Mountain Park (N4)
2008–20135 | inventories | bees (93 species), damselflies and dragonflies (28 species), ground-beetles (103 species) | contractors | two odonates of conservation concern, 42 bees new to county, 1 bee new to Maryland, park insect list expanded from 364 to 588 species
Cedar Breaks NM (G4)
2013–20141,4 | weekend “bioblast” | bat, bird, bug surveys | live identifications only, no specimens collected; educational fair to celebrate biodiversity at 10,000 feet; public participation; local universities, retired entomologist
Channel Islands NP (F4)6,7
2009–20145 | inventories | ants, beetles, lichens | local taxonomists, in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy
Chattahoochee River NRA (M5)
20115 | inventory | pollinators (bees) | principal investigator, academic and federal partners | 8 species new to state, 1 new to science
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal NHP (N4)
20141 | bioblitz | invasive species
20061 | 30 hr bioblitz | algae, amphibians, arachnids, bryophytes, fungi, insects, reptiles, select flowering plants, slime molds | with The Nature Conservancy
Chickasaw NRA (J5)7
20111,4 | 24 hr bioblitz, educational programs | 800 species | 40 scientists
Chiricahua NM (H5)8
Colorado NM (H4)6
multiple years5,6 | survey | insects | university researcher
Congaree NP (M5)
1995–present1 | ~1 hr training followed by 3–4 hr guided observation | birds, butterflies, moths | naturalist partners, citizen scientists (average 75 per year)
2006–20071 | spiderblitz, three 3 hr sessions | arachnids | professional scientist, public
5 | survey | freshwater mussels | professional scientists, conservation partner volunteers
Coronado NMem (GH5)8
Crater Lake NP (F2)
20141 | 24 hr bioblitz | moths and butterflies | entomologists, public
Craters of the Moon NM and NPres (G2/3)
20145 | inventory | pikas and natural sounds | citizen scientists
Cumberland Island NS (M6)6
Cuyahoga Valley NP (M3)7
Death Valley NP (F4)6
2007–20081 | bioblitz | invertebrates | taxonomists, school groups
Denali NP and NPres (C4)6,7
Dinosaur NM (H3)
multiple years5 | survey | insects, other arthropods | entomologist
Ebey’s Landing NHR (F1)
20045 | monthly collecting forays (April, May, June, September) | vascular plants | professional and amateur botanists, public
El Malpais NM (H5)
2007–20085 | ATBI | cave arthropods, bats, and other vertebrates | university researcher through CESU | 59 arthropods, 3 bats, 3 other vertebrates; many arthropod species new to science
Fire Island NS (O3)6
Fort Bowie NHS (H5)8
Fort Donelson NB (L4)
2013–20145 | targeted inventories, various techniques | plants and all animal species: photography; owls: audio calling; bats: echolocation recording; nighttime biota: infrared photography and night-vision scopes; bioluminescent species: UV illumination and high-intensity chemical lighting | volunteers, citizen scientists
Fort Matanzas NM (N6)6
Fort Pulaski NM (N5)
20131 | 12 hr bioblitz | nonnative plants | park staff, 27 public (high school students, area naturalists) | new exotic species identified
Fort Washington Park (N4)
ongoing5 | video and direct observation monitoring | bald eagles | citizen scientists
Fossil Butte NM (H3)6
Gateway NRA (N3)6
2007–2008,1 20101 | bioblitzes, ATBI | all taxa, 3 focal areas | scientists, 50 preregistered public
George Washington Birthplace NM (N4)6
2007–2009,1,3 20121,3 | bioblitzes, ATBI | arthropods, including terrestrial and aquatic insects, birds, fungi, vascular and nonvascular plants | professional and amateur scientists, partners, schools | 377 arthropod species identified
George Washington Carver NM (K4)
20131,4 | bioblitz | aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, small mammals, vascular plants, water mites | 4 professional scientists, 20 volunteers; 15 attended a related educational program | 141 species, 89 of which were new to park
George Washington Memorial Parkway (N4)
2006–20141,3 | 30 hr bioblitz, ATBI | algae, amphibians, arachnids, bryophytes, fungi, insects (including microwasps), reptiles, select flowering plants, slime molds | students, 59 citizen naturalists, academic institutions, museum | 378 genera (comprising 377 species) of insects
Glacier NP (H1)6
ongoing5 | focal taxa inventories | butterflies, diatoms, ferns, mayflies, mollusks, mycobacteria, vascular plants
Glen Canyon NRA (H4)
20091 | bioblitz | animals, plants | professional and amateur scientists | with The Nature Conservancy
20045 | surveys | amphibians, arthropods, reptiles, small mammals, vascular and nonvascular plants | professional scientists
Golden Gate NRA (E3)7
20142,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society
Grand Canyon NP (G4)
20075 | inventory | ground-dwelling arthropods | professional scientist
1999–20045 | surveys | aquatic annelids | park staff, professional scientists, public
~20045 | surveys | amphibians, arthropods, reptiles, small mammals, vascular and nonvascular plants | professional scientists
2001–20035 | inventory | terrestrial and riparian invertebrates | professional scientist | 1,127 taxa collected
Grand Portage NM (K2)7
Grand Teton NP (H2/3)6
20045 | surveys
Great Basin NP (G4)6,7
2009,1 2011–20131 | annual 24 hr targeted taxa bioblitzes | arachnids (2 orders and several families new to park, white cave mite may be new to science), bees and wasps (65 species), beetles, flies (47 families, 19 species new to park) | professional and amateur scientists, public, volunteers | average 60 participants per year
Great Sand Dunes NP and NPres (I4)7
5 | survey | insects | entomologist
Great Smoky Mountains NP (M4/5)6,7
1998–present3,4 | ATBI, grant-funded projects involving TWiGs, bioblitzes, educational programs, workshops | ~130 focal taxa projects over 17 years, including algae, annelids (including oligochaeta), ants, aphids, aquatic bugs, bacteria (hemlock, plant, soil, waterborne), beetles (leaf, long-horned, wood), butterflies, cave and karst biota, crickets, diatoms, dry cliff plants, elk stomach biota, ferns and fern viruses, fish, flies (biting, bloodsucking, crane-, horse-, moth-, tephritid), flat worms, forest litter, freshwater invertebrates, fungi and microfungi (including pyrenomycetes), grasshoppers, hemlock insects, homoptera, hymenoptera (including wasps), insect viruses, internal bird parasites, leeches, lichens, microspore parasites, mosquitoes, moths (clearwing, micro-, noctuidae, owl-), pauropoda, planthoppers/leafhoppers, pollinators, slime molds (including myxomycetes), soil mites, spiders, springtails, stream microbes, tardigrades, thysanoptera, tree-canopy life, vascular plants, violets, viruses (plant), waterborne spores, water mites | partner-led, long-term study; researchers; volunteers; student participation through research learning center; public events | 18,038 species total; 7,636 species new to park, 923 new to science | 400+ participants in 2013
Indiana Dunes NL (L3)6,7
ongoing5 | monitoring, counts | birds, plants of concern | 21 citizens, area naturalists | 52 bird species tallied
20092,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society | more than 1,200 species tallied
Isle Royale NP (L2)6
Jean Lafitte NHP and Pres (L6)7
20132,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | 458 species tallied | with National Geographic Society, 1,500 adults, 1,500 children, 100 scientists | Louisiana milk snake, mud minnow
John Day Fossil Beds NM (F2)7
John Muir NHS (E3)
2011–20135 | phenology monitoring | 50 high school students
Joshua Tree NP (FG5)
2011–20131 | 36 hr “biodiversity hunts” | terrestrial, aquatic, and aerial insects at park oases | university taxonomists and students, local naturalists, public education programs | range of 40–105 citizen scientists/event | new families, genera, and species to park
1994–present5 | checklist updates, counts, inventories, surveys | amphibians, breeding birds, butterflies, lichens, mammals, including bats and rodents, reptiles, terrestrial arthropods, including insects, vascular plants | park staff, academic institutions
1968–present5 | Christmas bird count | National Audubon Society
1991,5 1993,5 1999–20015 | surveys | bats | UCLA, Bat Conservation Int’l
Katmai NP and NPres (B5)7
Kenai Fjords NP (C5)6
Kings Canyon NP (F4)
2014 | inventory5 | DNA analysis of harvestmen (arachnid)
ongoing5 | Christmas bird count
2002–20045 | inventory | cave invertebrates | contractor | about 30 new species (combined with those reported for Sequoia NP)
5 | roadside acoustic surveys | bats
Knife River Indian Villages NHS (J2)7
Kobuk Valley NP (B3)9
Lake Clark NP and NPres (C5)6,7
Lewis and Clark NHP (F1)
20121 | bioblitz | macroinvertebrates | 300 participants
Mammoth Cave NP (L4)7
Manassas NBP (N4)
1995–20145 | annual breeding bird surveys | birds, grasslands, shrublands | local Audubon chapter | designation as Important Bird Area, 10 species of regional conservation concern; butterflies, bees, plants also documented
Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller NHP (N/O2)7
2013–20145 | Atlas of Life field day, pilot digital documentation | bees, birds, moths, plants | 40 workshop/program participants | 90 observations/ photographs by smartphone submitted to iNaturalist
Mesa Verde NP (H4)
1999–20075 | invertebrates and other arthropods | university entomologists | state range extensions, pinned collection
inventory5 | spiders | fire-burned areas | museum partner
inventory5 | ground-dwelling arthropods, spiders | comparison of burned and unburned pinyon-juniper forest | graduate student
Mississippi NRRA (K2)
2011–20131 | annual 24 hr focal-area bioblitzes | birds, fish, fungi, insects, mammals, plants | 100 participants in 2013, local university and museum | 322 species in 2013
Mojave NPres (G4)6
Monocacy NB (N4)7
Mount Rainier NP (F1)7
2004–20075 | annual forays at different park locations | vascular plants | botanists, public
survey5 | caddisflies, mayflies, stoneflies | entomologist
Muir Woods NM (E3)
20142,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | diverse taxa | with National Geographic Society
National Capital Parks (Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens) (N4)7
19961 | 24 hr bioblitz | NPS and USGS scientists
Niobrara NSR (J3)7
North Cascades NP (F1)6,7
ongoing5 | inventories | insects, lichens | independent researchers
2002–20075 | annual forays at different park locations | vascular plants | botanists, public
Ocmulgee NM (M5)
20131 | 2-day butterfly bioblitz | 480 participants | butterflies (28 species), dragonflies (5 species) | field identifications only (i.e., specimens not collected)
Olympic NP (F1)7
20083 | ATBI | fungi, insects, lichens, liverworts, microbes, mosses, spiders | before large-scale Elwha watershed restoration | park staff, academic institutions
Organ Pipe Cactus NM (G5)6
Ozark NSR (K4)7
Pecos NHP (I5)7
Petrified Forest NP (G5)6
Pictured Rocks NL (L2)6,7
Pipe Spring NM (G4)
2011–20124,5 | surveys, educational programs | bats, especially migratory species | academic partner | 18 species identified, 600 public participants
Piscataway Park (N4)
2013–20144,5 | videography, educational programs | bald eagles
Point Reyes NS (E3)6
2002–20141,5 | 24 hr bioblitzes, counts, forays, grants, 2- to 3-day inventories | algae, benthic invertebrates, crabs, diatoms, eelgrass, fish, fungi, intertidal biota, invasive species, lichens, mollusks, oysters, phytoplankton, sea squirts, shellfish, stream butterflies | taxonomists, students, 15–100 public and scientists per year depending on event
Pu‘uhonua o Hönaunau NHP (B7)7
Redwood NP (E2/3)6
Rock Creek Park (N4)
20072,4 | large 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | amphibians, aquatic insects, birds, fish, fungi, mammals, microbes, plants, reptiles, and terrestrial invertebrates (including insects) | with National Geographic Society | more than 650 species tallied
Rocky Mountain NP (I3)6,7
20122,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society, 5,000 public, schoolchildren, scientists, partners | 490 species total, 138 new to park (including 2 mammals)
2008–20091 | 2-day mycoblitz | fungi | professional and citizen scientists, local naturalist organization
2008–20095 | waterblitz | water sampling at 168 and 140 park locations, respectively | scientists, public
survey5 | caddisflies, mayflies, stoneflies | entomologist
Saguaro NP (G5)
2012–20145 | student monitoring of 10,000 saguaro cacti and other plants and animals
20112,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society, 5,500 public, schoolchildren, scientists, partners | 859 species tallied, 400 new to park, 1 may be new to science
Saint Croix NSR (K2)7
Saint-Gaudens NHS (O2)7
San Juan Island NHP (F1)6
20141 | 2-day bioblitz | all taxa | students to help run event
Sand Creek Massacre NHS (I4)
5 | survey | insects | entomologist
Santa Monica Mountains NRA (F5)6,7
2009–20144 | annual biodiversity festival (1.5 days) | 2,000 people
20082,4 | large, 24 hr bioblitz and fair (NPS-NGS) | all taxa | with National Geographic Society, 2,000 public, schoolchildren, scientists, partners | more than 1,700 species tallied
Sequoia NP (F4)
20145 | inventory | DNA analysis of harvestmen (insect)
ongoing5 | Christmas bird count
2002–20045 | inventory | cave invertebrates | contractor | about 30 new species (combined with those reported for Kings Canyon NP)
5 | roadside acoustic surveys | bats
Shenandoah NP (N4)7
Sleeping Bear Dunes NL (L2)6
Tallgrass Prairie NPres (J4)
2009–20135 | annual count | butterflies | 70 participants | 2013: 50 species (3,070 specimens), 5 species new to park
Timpanogos Cave NM (H3)6
Timucuan EHP (M6)6,7
Upper Delaware SRR (N3)
2013–20141,4 | 24 hr bioblitz | all taxa | 2013: 50 scientists, amateur naturalists, 25 volunteers, 250 educational program attendees | 1,024 species in 2013
Valley Forge NHP (N3)
20141,5 | “Summer of Bugs” (two 24 hr bioblitzes and a summerlong “photoblitz”) | terrestrial invertebrates | university partner with public participation | catalog bugs present in two seasons; includes macrophotography workshop and use of iNaturalist to log photos
20095 | “Crayfish Corps” | inventory and manual removal of nonnative rusty crayfish | volunteers from schools, summer camps, corporate groups, conservation organizations, families, park neighbors | native-to-nonnative crayfish ratio is 4:1
20035 | inventory | crayfish | 1 undescribed species and 1 new to state
Voyageurs NP (K2)7
Wolf Trap NPPA (N4)
20133,5 | photo inventory, ATBI | birds, insects (including pollinators: bees, butterflies, moths), plants | volunteer and federal biologist, professional and volunteer naturalists, public, local naturalist organizations | 100 bird species, thousands of photo insect and plant observations
Wrangell–St. Elias NP (D4/5)6,9
Wupatki NM (G4)
2012–ongoing5 | ATBI cave arthropods, bats, and other vertebrates | university researcher through CESU | 1 bat and at least 2 arthropod species new to science
Yellowstone NP (H2)6,7
20091 | 24 hr bioblitz, public event | various taxa | taxonomic working groups, public
2007–20091,3 | aquatic molecular ATBI | aquatic DNA of Yellowstone Lake, various taxa | largest study of environmental DNA: 7 billion base pairs of DNA sequenced | academic institutions
Yosemite NP (F4)7
2007–20143 | ATBI with annual targeted taxa and habitats | bryophytes, caves, cliff lichens, high-elevation lakes | park staff, taxonomists, contractor, American Alpine Club | 500 lichen species new to park, some new to Sierra Nevada and North America, a few new to science; more than 300 bryophyte species identified
2004–20105 | inventory | vertebrates | park, academic, and federal scientists | repeat of early 1900s Grinnell Survey
2002–20045 | inventory | cave invertebrates | contractor | 1 new species
Yucca House NM (H4)
1 year5 | survey | insects | entomologist
Yukon-Charley Rivers NPres (D3/4)9
Zion NP (G4)6