I am super impressed with our first weekend of observations! Over 250 species have been observed and 21 people have participated so far! And over half of you got 20 species to earn a free BioBlitz! Oklahoma registration. I will be sending personal messages through iNaturalist those people with instructions on registering for free.
I will announce our next challenge on Wednesday!
Here is your next challenge for prizes - post at least 5 photographic, identifiable observations from an Oklahoma State Park. This can be retroactive - previous posts from an Oklahoma State Park will count.
Find Oklahoma State Parks here: http://www.travelok.com/state_parks
You have until midnight Sunday April 16th to post these observations from the Oklahoma State Parks.
What will you earn? A choice between new Oklahoma Biological Survey logo t-shirt or free registration to BioBlitz! Oklahoma at Black Mesa.
Good Luck and Have Fun!
Priscilla
We have reached half the number of species that we observed last year - in only 6 days! I have high hopes for us breaking 1000 species this year!
Keep up the great observations everyone!
Hi Everyone!
I had a question from a couple people recently about reporting observations. They have been only posting new species they have personally observed, even if they see the same species several times in different places.
The question was "Should I only do new species or should I send observations of all species if I see them in different areas?" While we have been focused on the cumulative number of species observed, it is also very important from a ecological perspective, to report species from different geographic areas - especially if these areas have few observations, such as northwestern Oklahoma. To some people it is simply the number of different species observed that is important, but observing species in a variety of locations is important for biologists too. So, there is no right or wrong way to participate in the Virtual BioBlitz!
Someone asked what the current challenge prize t-shirt looked like. I can't figure out how to attache a picture to these posts, so you will have to look at the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/bioblitzoklahoma/
We have exceed last year's total species observed! We have also surpassed the number of observations by nearly 250! But best of all - we have almost a 50% increase in number of people participating in the Virtual BioBlitz! Great job everyone! And just think - we still have more than 1/3 of the month to go! I think 1000 is going down!
State Park Challenge - to be considered for a prize for the State Park Challenge (post 5 observations from Oklahoma State Parks by midnight last night) - you need to comment on this post with the species you observed, the date, what park you were visiting, and if you would like free BioBlitz! registration or a t-shirt (include size). I will then send a personal message to you to arrange for you to redeem your prize.
We have done great on getting lots of species! Now let's try to get more observations from around the state! Looking at the observation map, I see lots of gaps in our geography of Virtual BioBlitz! 2017. I got out my state map and my Sharpie to figure out which counties had no observations. From my best reckoning, of the 77 counties in Oklahoma, we have observations from only about half of them!
Your challenge is to make 10 identifiable, photographic observations in a county that has not been represented up to this point. Below is the list of counties that need observations (from my comparison of observations and a map of Oklahoma counties). The deadline is midnight, Wednesday April 26th.
This challenge will be for a chance to earn one of three books - Landscaping for Wildlife: A Guide to the Southern Great Plains, Oklahoma's Amphibians and Reptiles, Butterflies of Oklahoma, Kansas, and North Texas, Bats of Oklahoma Field Guide, or Last Child in the Woods.
Have fun exploring the state!
Counties that need observations (in no order)
Adair
Atoka
Beckham
Jackson
Caddo
Garvin
Craig
McIntosh
Creek
Johnston
Roger Mills
Custer
Kay
Noble
Seminole
Blaine
Dewey
Kiowa
Nowata
Bryan
Ellis
Garfield
Grant
Ottawa
Choctaw
Greer
Major
Pawnee
Harmon
Washita
Harper
Pontotoc
Woodward
Hughes
You have until midnight tonight to make observations in the unrepresented counties to earn a prize. To claim a prize, comment on this post with the following information:
--name of the county
--species of the 10 identifiable, photographic observations
--the book you would most like and a second choice (I have a limited number of copies) or if you would rather have a free BioBlitz! registration
The books are:
Landscaping for Wildlife: A Guide to the Southern Great Plains
Oklahoma's Amphibians and Reptiles
Butterflies of Oklahoma, Kansas, and North Texas
Bats of Oklahoma Field Guide
Last Child in the Woods
