The Sea Grant's Great Lakes BioBlitz is an opportunity for people in the Great Lakes region - Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Ontario, Canada - to collectively observe and compare and share the variety of life, or biodiversity, that they find in their communities.
BioBlitzes are a great way for naturalists, scientists, and curious people to meet in person in the great outdoors.
A BioBlitz is an intensive, time-limited survey of all living organisms within a designated area. Scientists, students, and community members collaborate to identify and document species using citizen science tools, most often, iNaturalist. These events provide a snapshot of biodiversity at a given time and place, helping researchers detect seasonal changes, track species distributions, and understand ecological interactions.
The 2025 BioBlitz is a collaboration of the Great Lakes Sea Grant Network and the Sea Grant Center for Great Lakes Literacy.
Image credit: M. Thoms
BioBlitz registration details for April 22 - May 20, 2025
2025 Registration Details
- Visit www.iNaturalist.org on your computer, or download the iNaturalist app from your app store onto your mobile device.
- Create a free account, or log in if you already have an account.
- Search "2025 Sea Grant Great Lakes BioBlitz."
- Select "join" to become a member of the 2025 Sea Grant Great Lakes BioBlitz project.
- Start making observations!
- Participate in weekly 2025 Sea Grant Great Lakes Bioblitz photo challenges and journal opportunities through your new iNaturalist account.
Project description
A BioBlitz is an event that focuses on finding and identifying as many wild, living things as possible in a specific area over a short period of time. This BioBlitz focuses on the Great Lakes region. It begins on Earth Day, April 22, 2025, and lasts four weeks, until May 20, 2025.
The Sea Grant Great Lakes BioBlitz will use iNaturalist to submit, record, and share observations.
Why Minnesota Sea Grant?
The Sea Grant Great Lakes BioBlitz was developed in response to a request from teachers for participatory science. Photos posted to iNaturalist are used for scientific research. This project supports Minnesota Sea Grant's Environmental Literacy and Workforce Development focus area. Awareness of the variety of life, or biodiversity, in the Great Lakes watershed is a key part of developing environmental literacy and is one of the Great Lakes literacy principles.
What have we done lately?
2025: The 2025 Sea Grant's Great Lakes BioBlitz will take place April 22 - May 20, 2025.
Participants & audience
Sea Grant's Great Lakes BioBlitz is geared toward teachers, educators, students, families, and those interested in growing their environmental literacy.
Funding
Sea Grant's 2025 Great Lakes BioBlitz is funded by the Center for Great Lakes Literacy.
Testimonials
Share your Great Lakes BioBlitz finds on social media by tagging @mnseagrant or using the hashtag #GLBioBlitz!
