Foursomes of all ages hunted bugs, plants and birds during Berkey Avenue Mennonite Fellowship’s first ever BioBlitz, held during the Christian Education hour on Sunday, June 3. BioBlitzes are a popular activity at nature centers and other biodiversity hotspots. Scientists of multiple disciplines gather for a 24 hour period to see how many different species they can locate.
Berkey’s BioBlitz was only one hour, and since participants were not experts, they had permission to name their finds themselves. The 25 participants discovered damselflies, hackberry trees, a wren’s nest and many creatively named species such as the “black-bottomed ant.”
The nature experience was part of an intergenerational summer Christian education series designed to help participants of all ages get to know each other better. Getting to know the strip of land the congregation owns and the non-human choir of praise on it was an added bonus. Berkey’s acreage also hosts a large community garden under the leadership of member Lowell Nafziger.
To learn more about BioBlitzes, see this short article in Audubon Magazine.