College invites public to join BioBlitz

Flathead Valley Community College invites the community to participate in the college’s first BioBlitz from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 9, on the college campus.

The event is part of an effort to survey the biological diversity on the campus. 

The college biology and natural resource departments will lead the charge and need community volunteers to help identify as many plants, birds, amphibians, insects, fish, mammals, fungi and any other living organisms on the college’s more than 200-acre campus. 

Much of the land is adjacent to the Stillwater River.

The BioBlitz combines scientific discovery with a fun, community activity. Participants will be supplied with the equipment to catalog the living things on campus, including binoculars, field guides and field checklists.

The BioBlitz tent will provide a work area for specimen identification using dissecting and compound microscopes.

Additionally, college biotechnology students will demonstrate DNA barcoding, a technique to easily identify what an organism is. Several demonstrations of scientific processes and a tour of the campus farm will be available for interested community members.

The event begins at 9 a.m. From 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., guided hikes of approximately 45 minutes to an hour will be led over the campus to identify organisms.

Event parking will be between the Early Childhood Center and Arts & Technology buildings on campus. Participants can arrive and depart at any time during the event, and are encouraged to dress weather appropriately and bring water.