2012/07/13 - Clifftop BioBlitz at Salt Lick Point Land & Water Reserve in Monroe County, Illinois

A BioBlitz is a 24-hour treasure hunt for life forms. In May 2011, more than 50 scientists and naturalists took part in a BioBlitz at Salt Lick Point Land and Water Reserve, a nearly 600-acre natural area adjacent to Valmeyer. WSIU public television, Carbondale, IL, produced an INFocus segment on the BioBlitz.
A critical factor for the health and sustainability of our bluff land ecosystem is the biological native species diversity in the corridor. Native plant and animal species diversity acts as a kind of an insurance policy, with greater species numbers more resilient to stresses and disturbances in the ecosystem. The larger the number of native species means a greater capacity to self-sustain the system.
We know only a little about native species diversity in the bluff lands. Over the last decade natural history surveys in the bluff lands have cataloged 270 species of birds, about 700 species of plants, 46 species of mammals, 62 species of reptiles and amphibians, and almost 90 species of butterflies. But there is much, much more we don't know.
BioBlitz participants inventoried more than 1,000 life forms. More information about the BioBlitz and a consolidated listing of the BioBlitz inventories is available on Clifftop's website by clicking on this link: www.clifftopall...