Biodiversity Month - Report 167

Westminster West School Backyard BioBlitz

Event type: Backyard BioBlitz
Number of participants: 2 Teachers, 45 Students
Event date: May 17, 2002

General Description of area surveyed:
The site is an open field edged by forest on the north, west, and south, with a stream bordered by a marsh along the east side, parallel to the road. The school (Westminster West School - grades 1-4) is right across the street.

Overcast
Rainy (we got rained on!)
55° F

Species Found Total

Amphibians 4

Reptiles 1

Birds 20

Fish 0

Mammals 1

Insects 4

Other Arthropods 0

Mollusks 0

Plants 47

Fungi

2

Total 39

List of species common names (or description) found:

Plants

Birds

Mammals

solomans seal

American tree sparrow

Beaver

red trillium

blue jay

wild strawberries

robin

Amphibians

apple tree

chickadee

spring peepers

saw grass

goldfinch

red spotted newt

unidentified grass

cliff swallow

red-backed salamander

spruce trees

wood thrush

yellow spotted salamander

rough cinquefoil

Tennesee warbler

plantain

nuthatch

Reptiles

orange hawkweed

woodcock

American toad

cat tails

northern oriole

white pine

red winged blackbird

Insects

thistle

Empidomax flycatcher

black flies

dandelion

yellow throated warbler

mosquitoes

clover

yellow rumped warbler

mayfly nymphs

white violets

ruby throated hummingbird

yellow violets

cardinal

Fungi

jack-in-the pulpet

blackburnian warbler

lichen

golden rod

evening grosbeak

unidentified mushrooms

willow

Canadian geese

hickory tree

spirea

spinulose wood fern

sessile bellwort

northern honeysuckle

columbine

equisetum

curly dock

interupted fern

northern bedstraw

wild parsnip

rush

sedge

sensitive fern

sugar maple

red stemmed dogwood

speckled alder

polytrichium

Japanese honeysuckle

wild blueberry

black cherry

false soloman seal

What species was suprising?
Woodcock -it was displaying.

What species was the "coolest" and why?
Mayfly nymph - lots of them!

Ms. Beth Kaplin reports:
Two of us worked with the kids from 1-4 grade in the schhol - we broke them into two groups (one group of 1-2 graders, and other group of 3-4th graders). Each group had sampling equipment, 1-2 graders sampled in the stream with nets and also sampled in the woods around the stream. The 3-4 graders went into the field and surrounding woods and sampled the vegetation and birds. The little kids had a blast sampling in the stream! We began the project by talking about what biodiversity is and asking kids to think about it, why its important, etc. Then we went and sampled, then returned to classroom - the kids drew the nymphs, drew maps of the site, etc. In the future we would like to be more prepared to use the resources at your website, and to have a longer time period with the students.