Little Valley Bioblitz

Where and when

Saturday, May 25, 2024 from 8 a.m.-3 p.m.

We will meet at the Bower’s Mansion Regional Park parking lot at 8 a.m. on Saturday, May 25, 2024 to caravan to the Little Valley Research Station together. We will return all participants to the parking lot by 3 p.m. Participants are required to stay for the full duration of the event.

Bioblitz overview

A bioblitz is an intensive, citizen-led survey designed to record and identify all living things (i.e., plants and animals) occurring within a defined area, with the ultimate goal of capturing a complete species list for a given property. Local experts and scientists will be on-site to assist in species identification, and no previous experience or expertise in botanical or wildlife surveys is necessary! All are welcome and encouraged to learn and participate.

About the Little Valley Research Station

The Little Valley Research Station is a 38-acre property owned by the University of Nevada, Reno. The Little Valley Research Station has a facility for teaching, research and outreach, and also offers direct access to the Whittell Forest & Wildlife Area – a 2,650 acre property situated in the Little Valley, which encompasses a large meadow system and forested landscape managed by the US Forest Service and the University. Both properties are designated University Core Research Facilities maintained as living field laboratories for research, instruction and community outreach in order to contribute to the understanding and protection of natural ecosystem integrity while engaging Nevada citizens in learning and problem-solving activities.

Documenting observations

We will use the iNaturalist application to document observations. The iNaturalist app uses crowdsourced data to create local species lists and track species abundances (declines or population increases) in a given area. Nearly 63 million observations and 330,000 species have already documented using this app! The app may be downloaded via your app store and should be loaded prior to arrival onsite (no coverage in the valley!). Demonstrations on how to record observations using the iNaturalist application will be provided onsite by local experts and bioblitz organizers.

Steps to prepare you for making observations

1. Register at inaturalist.org/signup
2. Download the mobile app to your phone and log into your account
3. Watch the iNaturalist video tutorials
4. Read about how to make good observations and step-by-step instructions using the app on your phone:
   • You will need to join our project page. From your phone app, select the "more" link at the bottom right (a three dot icon), then select "projects," and then enter our project name into the search icon (magnifying glass icon): “Little Valley Bioblitz.” You can also find our project in the "nearby" screen.
   • At the bottom of the screen for each of your observations will be a "projects" folder. You will need to tag each observation to our Bioblitz project folder in order for your observation to be linked to the Bioblitz.
5. Don't forget to charge and bring your phone to the Bioblitz!

Participation

No experience or expertise is needed to participate! A love of the natural world, desire to learn, or interest in supporting science are all you need.

What to bring

• Water
• Lunch and snacks
• A fully charged phone or tablet with the iNaturalist app loaded!
• Sun protection (sunscreen, hats, sunglasses, etc)
• Others: binoculars, field guides, gloves

Policies and regulations

These are some of the Little Valley Research Station policies. View the complete list of rules for the properties.

• No campfires or open fires of any kind are allowed on the properties.
• Smoking of any kind is prohibited on University property.
• Alcohol consumption is prohibited per University policy.
• Firearms are prohibited on University property.
• Dogs are prohibited on the properties without express written permission from the forest administration.
• Both the Whittell Forest & Wildlife Area and the area surrounding the Little Valley Research Station are natural areas and, as such, have potential risks or hazards associated with use, including but not limited to, inclement weather, serious personal injury due to slips or falls, wild animal attacks, or accidents due to negligence of users.

Registration

Please register using the following form. The registration process includes a waiver. Registration will close on Monday, May 20, 2024 at 5 p.m. and space is limited.