NatureMapping and UW Botanic Gardens
Washington Park Arboretum BioBlitz 2010

Introduction

The year 2010 has been declared the International Year of Biodiversity. With generous support from the Arboretum Foundation, teams of scientists, students and inquisitive citizens attempted to inventory all the life they could find in the Arboretum's north end.

The Arboretum is a hidden gem on the shores of Lake Washington. Jointly managed by University of Washington and the City of Seattle, its 230 acres are a dynamic assortment of plants found nowhere else. The City owns the land and the University owns all of the trees and plant collections.

WPA Bioblitz Results (2010)

May 21-22, 2010. The Greenhouse was "Science Central" where all the scientists, staff, and volunteers gathered.

Over 100 scientists, taxa experts, volunteers, high school and college students participated in the 24-hour inventory of birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, insects, fungi, lichen, and plants.

Map of all Observations

The weather was cold which decreased the numbers of insects collected. No bats were netted, but the owl team was lucky to watch the Barred owls during their shift.

Data

Final results
Each of the taxonomic groups will have a map and species list added to this page when final counts are completed.

Plants ~141 species (identification process is continuing) View map of plants

Lichen - 26 species

Fungi - 25 species, See map and species list (pdf)

Invertebrates - ~ 120 (identification process is continuing)
View map of invertebrates

Spiders - 38 species (15 non-native), See map and species list (pdf)

Birds - 56 species (4 species, Caspian tern, Gadwall, Western gull, Western wood-peewee observed but not predicted)
View map of bird sightings, including sightings by bioblitzers in kayaks

Mammals - 7 species, See map and species list (pdf)

Amphibians - 4 species, See map and species list (pdf)

Reptiles - 2 species, See map and species list (pdf)

For a complete list:
Bird, Amphibian, Reptile and Mammal Predicted vs Observed (pdf)

In the News

Botanists race to record Arboretum species in Seattle's first bioblitz - The Seattle Times, Sunday, May 23, 2010

Bleary-eyed botanists trudged along the trails of Washington Park Arboretum on Saturday in a quest for every tree, herb and escaped garden plant they could find that is not part of the official collection.

Who else lives in Seattle? 'Bioblitz' coming May 21 - seattlepi.com, May 10, 2010

Seattle keeps pretty good track of its population of humans. But what about everyone else? A team of scientists will take Seattle's first snapshot of resident plant and animal life when they conduct what's called a "bioblitz" of Seattle's Washington Park Arboretum.

For more information

Washington Park Arboretum
Street address:
2300 Arboretum Drive E
Seattle, WA 98112 (map)

Learn more about BioBlitzes >>

NatureMapping and UW Botanic Gardens Washington Park Arboretum BioBlitz 2010