You, your family, and your
learners can
celebrate Earth Day with the Center for Great Lakes Literacy’s/Sea
Grant 7th Annual Great Lakes BioBlitz! This event is a great opportunity
to engage youth and the public in community science, collect data to support
biodiversity research and conservation, and learn more about the organisms in
the Great Lakes Basin.
What is the Great Lakes
BioBlitz?
A free event that focuses on finding and identifying as many wild, living things as possible in the Canadian provinces and the U.S. states that have coastline on the Great Lakes during a specified period of time. You need not be in the Great Lakes basin watershed to participate, just in a Great Lakes state or province.
When is it?
It begins on Earth Day, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, and runs for 4 weeks, ending on Saturday, May 23, 2026.
How do I participate?
The beauty of this project is
that you decide your level of participation! Take an afternoon to explore and
document some plants or wildlife in an area, or pick a location to return to
weekly, or set a goal to find something new every day–there are many ways to
participate.
- Visit
iNaturalist or download the app onto your phone and create an
account.
- Become
a member of the
2026 Great Lakes BioBlitz project
- Get
outside, get out your cameras, and start making and posting observations!
[Additional action: As you are able, verify other participants' Great Lakes BioBlitz Project postings to make them “research grade.”]
Why participate?
There are many benefits of
becoming a BioBlitz wizard, here are just a few:
- Engage
in an outdoor activity, discover the wild living things in the world
around you, form and strengthen a place-based connection
- Join a
global community of observers, learners, and scientists passionate about
biodiversity and the Great Lakes
- Contribute to a global database of organisms. Observations made on iNaturalists contribute to research, conservation, and educational outreach programs
And please note: you don't need to bioblitz for four weeks – you can do it for an hour, a day,
etc.
Want to learn more?
- Visit
the Great
Lakes BioBlitz Educator Google Site for more information about the
project and educator resources for engaging youth in this wonderful learning
experience!
- All the links for the BioBlitz are also available on the WiSG Webpage.
Want to help market
this event to others?
Her are some resources to help you get the word out:
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