WEI Invites community to first BioBlitz event to explore biodiversity

The event turns anyone with a smartphone into a citizen scientist. Working alongside local biology experts, participants will search for plants, animals, fungi, and other organisms, photographing each find and logging it through the iNaturalist app, where artificial intelligence and a community of experts help identify what was seen. Those observations feed a global scientific database that researchers worldwide use to study species and track biodiversity.

From campus survey to public event

WEI began using iNaturalist on its own to document native species on campus. After sharing that initiative with local experts and organizations, the institute developed the BioBlitz to encourage greater appreciation of the natural environment in Wakulla County and the broader Big Bend region.

“Hopefully, this event can help people appreciate how beautiful and biodiverse our region is and inspire people to make decisions that help preserve the other living beings that we share our world with,” said Henry Gwynn, WEI’s Instruction and Project Coordinator.

The event is presented in partnership with the C2A3 Community College Alliance for Agriculture Advancement, a national organization dedicated to strengthening agricultural education.

WEI Invites community to first BioBlitz event to explore biodiversity

What participants can expect

Attendees will explore local ecosystems on foot across the campus, learning about the region’s biodiversity while contributing observations that carry real scientific weight. Every photo logged through iNaturalist becomes a data point researchers can use, meaning a single afternoon of exploring can add to long-term knowledge about which species live in the Big Bend region and how those populations are faring.

The hands-on format lowers the barrier to field science: no prior experience is required, only curiosity and the free iNaturalist app. Local biology experts will be on hand to help participants identify finds and answer questions about the organisms they encounter.

Why a BioBlitz matters right now

Events like this one matter because biodiversity data is only as good as the number of eyes collecting it. A single research team can cover only so much ground; a community event compresses months of survey work into a few hours and builds a snapshot of local ecosystems that scientists can compare against future counts. For Wakulla County and the Big Bend region, that baseline matters — it is the reference point against which any later change in local wildlife can be measured.

Detailed infographic map wakulla county florida usa

It also gives residents a direct stake in conservation. When people see the variety of life on a campus they can visit, the abstract idea of preserving biodiversity becomes something they have personally witnessed and documented.

Those interested in participating can register through the link on the institute’s event page. The BioBlitz runs Sunday, November 15, from 2 to 5 p.m. on the WEI campus.

Worth a look