How to Participate

Step 1—Make an account on iNaturalist.org

Step 2—While at iNaturalist.org, search “Merck Forest BioBlitz 2020”. Once on the page, click “Join”. Make sure to then follow the link in the project page description to RSVP with your name and email to our Conservation Manager. We will use your email to communicate prior to the event. We will be sending out iNaturalist tutorials and will set up the quests and make available maps of cover type/natural communities, geophysical features, unique ecological features, and anything else we think you may want to know.

Step 3—Visit Merck Forest at any time on July 25th and/or 26th and make an observation; make many! You can submit findings (or save them) in real time using the iNaturalist app on your smartphone, or upload them later on a computer. Please, no collection, observations must be wild, and practice quality stewardship.

You do not need to be an expert naturalist. While we encourage all participants to attempt to identify their findings themselves, the beauty of iNaturalist is that it employs artificial intelligence to help identify your finding for you. It also allows other other users, including experts in their field, to view and identify your uploaded observation for you, from any place in the world. You do not need to identify what you find, just share it.

Also, please note that there are plenty of camping options at Merck Forestincluding dispersed camping. Reservations can be made through merckforest.org

This BioBlitz will also contribute toward the overall Merck Forest Biodiversity Project, another iNaturalist project that is ongoing year round. To date, we are up to an astounding 664 species from 42 observers contributing almost 2000 observations for Merck Forest!

Q) What is a BioBlitz?

A) It is an event that focuses on finding and identifying as many species as possible in a specific area over a short period of time.

Q) Do you need to be an experienced naturalist to participate?

A) No! You, yourself, do not even need to identify what you find, although it is encouraged of course. Using iNaturalist, experts will review and identify what you find for you.

Q) Why conduct a BioBlitz?

A) To discover and document new species living at Merck Forest; to monitor for the existence of species seen before and possibly those lost, for both Merck Forest and the region.

Findings from last year’s BioBlitz revealed new and exciting species never before seen at Merck Forest- including observations not seen before in the region!

This Lance-tipped Darner (Aeshna constricta), found by Nathaniel Sharp at Page Pond during the 2019 BioBlitz was the first documented finding of the species for Bennington County, Vermont.

Stats from 2019 BioBltiz:

Event period: 24 hours

Number of observations: 539

Number of species identified: 282

Number of iNaturalist participants: 17

HISTORIC VICTORY AS U.S SENATE VOTES TO FULLY FUND LWCF, RESTORE OUR NATIONAL PARKS

June 17, 2020: The United States Senate today overwhelmingly voted to pass legislation to fully and permanently fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and invest in critical repair needs within national parks and other public lands. The Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) passed the Senate by a vote of (73-25), and will now move on to the House of Representatives, where the two issues have the support of a bipartisan majority.