What is a BioBlitz?
A BioBlitz is part contest, part festival, part educational event, and part scientific endeavor where MPM brings together a group of scientists in a race against time to see how many species they can count in a 24-hour celebration of biodiversity in a Wisconsin natural area.
The public is invited to observe the scientists’ activities, to interact with them, and to participate in other activities that are presented by the Museum and a host of invited nature-oriented organizations.
Why do it?
The BioBlitz is designed to increase awareness of the variety of life, especially in neighborhood parks and natural areas, and the services these various species provide to improve the quality of our lives. We usually hear the word “biodiversity” in regard to rainforests with their vast number of species. Yet the diversity of life in our own backyards is phenomenal. We take for granted clean water, fertile soil, and air to breathe. Yet these are all the result of working ecosystems filled with species that perform these tasks. From our morning shower to our late night snack, we are supported by biodiversity every minute of the day. What better way to address the topic than to invite people to share in our 24-hours of discovery and to experience the vast array of species that we can find in their neighborhood over the course of just one day?
See what we've discovered...
2015: Schlitz Audubon Nature Center
2016: Grant Park
2017: Fox River Park
2018: Lake Farm County Park
2019: Riveredge Nature Center
2021: Wehr Nature Center
2022: Pringle Nature Center
2023: Havenwoods State Forest