National Geographic Education National Geographic Education

Program

BioBlitz Education

Connect Students with Citizen Science and Community Geography

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  • Photo: A screenshot from the Rocky Mountain National Park FieldScope project.

    National Geographic BioBlitz 2012

    Explore Rocky Mountain National Park in an Interactive Map

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Engage Students in Community Geography and Citizen Science

A BioBlitz can happen in most any geography—urban, rural, or suburban—in as large an area as a national park or small as a schoolyard. Biologists often measure the population of particular species or study an environment’s biodiversity, but a BioBlitz brings together the expertise of multiple scientists and naturalists with the power of citizens, including students, willing to take a snapshot of an area’s biodiversity in about 24 hours.

Field Learning Resources

Whether you’re participating in this year’s National Geographic/National Park Service BioBlitz or one in your own backyard, schoolyard, or local park, help students prepare to study biodiversity firsthand by practicing skills that scientists use in the field. The activities below will help students make observations, record data, understand classification, and map their findings. Show a video and read from the blog to find out what happens at an actual BioBlitz.



Saguaro National Park 2011 BioBlitz: Educator Resources

The guides and instructional resources below will help you introduce your students to interactive mapping and other technologies to help dig into the concept of a BioBlitz, using the site of the 2011 National Geographic BioBlitz in Saguaro National Park as a case study. The activities are appropriate for students in grade 5 and above.

BioBlitz Media

Program Partners

2012 BioBlitz: Rocky Mountain National Park

  • BioBlitz_100X75.jpg

    Nat Geo BioBlitz

    Find out more about this 10-year partnership with the National Park Service.

  • Photo: A subalpine conifer forest landscape in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado.

    Join the Event

    Find out how you can participate in the Rocky Mountain National Park BioBlitz in August, 2012.

  • Photo: A screenshot from the Rocky Mountain National Park FieldScope project.

    FieldScope

    Use this interactive mapping tool to learn about the Park before the event.

Tools for Any BioBlitz

Use our activities at left to prepare students for their fieldwork. And consider checking out these helpful tools and technologies designed for teachers and learners from our partners.

  • Image: Encyclopedia of Life logo

    Encyclopedia of Life

    Create a collection of your schoolyard bioblitz results and generate a field guide to share with the community

  • Photograph: Small yellow butterfly lands on a white flower.

    Project Noah

    Use the web or a smartphone to upload photos of species from your bioblitz and join this growing community