2024 Upper Delaware BioBlitz at The Highlights Foundation Retreat Center

The 2024 Upper Delaware BioBlitz will be held on June 28th and 29th at The Highlights Foundation Retreat Center in Boyds Mills, Wayne County, PA. The 8 teams of scientists and amateur naturalists will gather at noon on June 28th to begin their collection of every unique species of plant, animal, fungus and lichen they can find in 24 hours. Some teams, like the Mammal Team looking for bats and the Insect Team looking for night flying insects, will work through the night.

On Saturday, June 29th from 10 am to 4 pm, the public is invited to come and meet the scientists, see what they have collected, learn about their work and go on walks and participate in workshops. There will be art activities and performances for kids to learn about science in different ways. Check back here and on Facebook and Instagram for updates as details of programs are announced.

2021 Virtual Upper Delaware BioBlitz Results

The results of the 2021 Virtual Upper Delaware BioBlitz are in. 7 teams of scientists and amateur naturalists visited the private property in Northern Wayne County over the course of the year. The 65+ acre property is on the ridge overlooking the Delaware River and is very diverse habitat including open fields and meadows, wetlands, ponds, a headwaters stream and mixed hardwood forest.

Over 725 unique species were collected, identified and catalogued and 18 of those species were listed as Wayne County first occurrences (new publicly accessible records of the presence of that species in the County).

 Here is a summary of the findings:

Team	Species #
Birds	80
Botany (Vascular Plants)	158
Bryology (Mosses, Algae and Worts) and Lichens	63
Fish	0
Fungi (Mushrooms and Molds)	173
Herps (Reptiles and Amphibians)	18
Invertebrates (Aquatic and Terrestrial insects, worms and snails)	230
Mammals	5
Total	727

Click here to view the entire catalog which is online

Much of the data is also online in iNaturalist where you can get more information about each species and see species photos. Click here to view the 2021 Upper Delaware BioBlitz data in iNaturalist. Thanks to Tanya Dapkey of the Academy of Natural Sciences for helping coordinate the use of iNaturalist for the BioBlitz!

2021 Virtual Upper Delaware BioBlitz

We are holding an Upper Delaware River BioBlitz in 2021! The event will be held virtually on a biodiverse private property in Wayne County, PA that is at the crest of the ridgetop above the Delaware River and contains a portion of a headwaters stream.

Each of the 8 teams of biologists will schedule exclusive dates for their survey, collection and identification of species on the property over a 24 hour period.

We will be posting videos, photos and accounts of each of the teams work as it happens. Perhaps, in the fall if conditions permit, we will host an event to recap the year's findings and give people an opportunity to meet the scientists in person!

There are opportunities for volunteers to help with site logistics and team support. If interested, send a message to info@upperdelawarebioblitz.com and we will get back to you.

Photo by Dave Soete from the 2018 Upper Delaware BioBlitz

2018 Upper Delaware BioBlitz final results

The teams of scientists have further examined their vouchered specimens in their labs, reviewed the preliminary ids and compared the 2018 results with the results from the 2013 Upper Delaware BioBlitz also held at the Gales Property. The results are in!

A total of 881 species were collected over the 24 hour period. Of these, 265 species were newly identified in 2018 and the remainder had also been identified in 2013. Also, 42 Wayne County "first occurrences" were reported. First occurrences are records of species that had never been previously publicly documented. By and large the first occurrences reported are within their known habitat ranges but indicate that the field research has not been previously conducted in the area and published.

The complete report and results are available on the Science page of this site.

Here is a summary table of the final results:

2018 Upper Delaware BioBlitz at the Gales Property, Starlight, PA

The 2018 Upper Delaware BioBlitz was held on Friday, June 29th and Saturday, June 30th. Over 55 scientists and amateur naturalists gathered on the 65 acre site for 24 hours to collect, identify and catalogue every single species they could find visible to the naked eye.  Over 40 volunteers helped stage the event.

The event was a huge success with over 200 children and their families visiting during the public portion of the event to meet the scientists, see what they collected and participate in numerous programs including walks, talks, demonstrations and workshops.

Preliminary results are in and the 9 teams representing different biological sections discovered over 765 unique species during the event. This number is expected to change and grow as the teams complete their work this fall and updated results will be posted at that time.

Here are the 2018 results identified by team:

The Gales Property was also the site of the 2013 Upper Delaware BioBlitz, the first BioBlitz in the region. In 2013 the 9 teams of researchers collected 1,022 distinct species in 24 hours.

More information will be published here and on the BioBlitz Facebook page as it becomes available.

This was the 4th Upper Delaware BioBlitz and the next one will be held in 2020 on a site and date to be determined. If you know of a site that represents the biological diversity of the Upper Delaware watershed you can nominate it for the 2020 BioBlitz by contacting us at info@upperdelawarebioblitz.com

Thank you to our 2018 sponsors, presenters, team leaders and volunteers including:

Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University
Catskill Brewery
Cornell Cooperative Extension Sullivan County
Dave Soete
Delaware Highlands Conservancy
Delaware Highlands Mushroom Society
Delaware Riverkeeper Network
Don Hamilton
Erik Silldorff
Faith Zerbe
Fred Krasselt
Friends of the Upper Delaware River
Hancock Community Education Foundation
Hancock Liquor Store
Howard Whidden
Isabelle Betancourt
Janet Burgan
Jack Barnett
Joann Morsch
John Bromberg
Karen Outlaw
Kathleen Christie
Kathy Dodge
Keith Bowman
Kelley Stewart
Laura Silverman
Lindsay Barrett George
Marcia Dunsmore
Mary Anne Carletta
Matt Marshall
NACL Theater
Nathaniel Whitmore
National Environmental Education Foundation
National Park Service
National Parks Conservation Association
NE PA Audubon Society
Nicole Slevin
Norcross Wildlife Foundation
Paul Overbeck
Pennsylvania Native Plant Society
Rich Horwitz
Robin Sampson
Roy Morsch
Sandy Long
Scott Rando
Shehawken Chapter Trout Unlimited
Sierra Club, PA Chapter
Stef Kroll
Sue Currier
Sullivan County Audubon Society
Thomas LaDuke
Upper Delaware Council
US Forest Service
The John & Helen Villaume Foundation
Wayne County Community Foundation
Wayne County Conservation District
Willow Wisp Organic Farm
and many others!

2016 Upper Delaware BioBlitz at Ten Mile River Boy Scout Camp

The 2016 Upper Delaware BioBlitz was held on June 24th and 25th at the Ten Mile River Scout Camp (TMR) in Tusten Township, Sullivan County, New York, returning to the site of the 2014 Upper Delaware BioBlitz.

Over 60 renowned scientists and amateur naturalists comprised the 9 teams surveying the site. The biologists came from throughout the region including some people from Philadelphia, Harrisburg and New York City.

They identified 756 unique species in 24 hours.

The site encompassed a 500 acre plus stretch of the Camp from the Delaware River to and including Maul's Pond and Grassy Swamp Pond. The center of activities was at the head of Rock Lake on Cochecton Turnpike.

The public portion of the event was on Saturday, June 25th from 9am to 3pm. There were activities for children and their families including nature walks for birds, fungi and native plants, as well as other demonstrations of scientific work and programs. A workshop on nature photography was held featuring 4 renowned local nature photographers. A scientific illustration workshop helped people learn to make technically detailed drawings of specimens they found in nature.

Here are the 2016 results of species identified by team:

The Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River unit of the NPS was the lead sponsor in 2016 and the Delaware Highlands Conservancy was the fiscal sponsor. The Greater New York Council of the Boy Scouts of America, who own and manage TMR, heartily supported the event.

2014 Upper Delaware BioBlitz

The 2014 Upper Delaware BioBlitz was held on Saturday, June 28th and Sunday, June 29th at the confluence of the Delaware River and Ten Mile River on the Boy Scouts of America, Greater New York Councils, Ten Mile River Scout Camp.

Over 60 renowned scientists and amateur naturalists comprised the 9 teams surveying the site. They identified 884 unique species including 123 "first occurrences", species never before identified with the data publicly accessible, in Sullivan County.

The site encompassed a 500 acre plus stretch of the Camp from the Delaware River to and including Maul's Pond and Grassy Swamp Pond. The center of activities was at the head of Rock Lake on Cochecton Turnpike.

The public portion of the event was on Sunday, June 29th from 9am to 3pm. There were activities for children and their families including nature walks, demonstrations and programs.

Here are the 2014 results of species identified by team:

2013 Upper Delaware BioBlitz

To highlight the biodiversity of the Upper Delaware River watershed and, in particular, the portion of the watershed in Starlight, Wayne County, PA, we held a BioBlitz event June 28-29, 2013. It was held on the 63.5 acre Gales Property owned by the Norcross Wildlife Foundation

The teams assembled on the site at 12 Noon on Friday, June 28th, collected specimens, camped on site, and continued collecting until 12 noon the following Saturday.

On Saturday, June 29th from 9 AM till 3 PM, the public was invited to view the collected specimens, talk to the experts, and learn about the biodiversity of the target site.

Over 50 scientists and amateur naturalists from all over Pennsylvania and New York participated in the BioBlitz. More than 25 volunteers helped run the event. 200 visitors came to see what the teams had collected, participate in programs and tours of the site.

The final results are that 1,022 distinct species were collected and identified.

The complete report and results are available on the Science page of this site.

Here are the results of species identified by team: