August 2004

Scientists converge on Erie Bluffs to inventory vast natural resources Talk about your “dream team.” Gathered on the shores of Lake Erie last month, more than 140 specialists brought no playbooks, no winning records. Instead, they came with an unparalleled depth of scientific knowledge, personal commitment, and a lively team spirit. And, they definitely kept score. Scientists, naturalists and volunteers from across the state all converged on Erie Bluffs State Park, Erie County, in an extensive effort to document life forms at Pennsylvania’s newest state park. From white-footed mice to white-tailed deer; from red oaks towering above to diminutive lichens growing below, as many animals and plants as possible would be identified in this day and night field exercise dubbed a “bioblitz.” Envision a large tent erected on a 540-acre tract, serving as the brain-center for dozens of activities involving scores of people. The pace is hectic, chaotic at times, but commitment of the participants is all encompassing. Sally Just, director of DCNR’s Office of Conservation Science, watches as birders prepare to trek to the Lake Erie shore; Bureau of Forestry biologists and entomologists ready their animal and beetle traps; and a Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) crew dons waders, grabs seine nets and heads to nearby Elk Creek. Behind Just, volunteers separate, press, and catalog plant species as they are identified; a Western Pennsylvania Conservancy volunteer pores over his spider collection; and another conservancy staffer enters one species after another on the computer. Taking it all in Saturday, July 17, as the bioblitz kicked into high gear, Just looked around at DCNR’s first-ever endeavor and asked a simple question for which there was no easy answer: “Where else could you see this level of expertise in so many taxa groups assembled?” she asked. “We have so many experts gathered here with so many specialties. There is no way you could contract for this incredible level of expertise and achieve this level of collaboration. “This diverse gathering is important because we are looking at entire ecosystems, not just individual species. These folks will tell us not only what is here, but also the health of these ecosystems.” Volunteer experience, according to registration paperwork, tallied no less than 1,430 years. Among amateur naturalists and professional scientists, experience ranged from six months to 48 years. Many came from the Northwest Pennsylvania/Northeast Ohio region; others from distant southeast and south central regions of Pennsylvania. Registration records also showed the volunteer force represented over 20 governmental, academic and non-profit organizations. What the event’s paperwork did not show is the volunteers’ dedication. It loomed on the edge of a ravine where Duck Run snakes into Lake Erie. There James Hart, mammalogist with the Pa. Natural Heritage Program, carted in dozens of sections of mist nets; erected them; and sat through most of the night, catching, identifying and releasing bats. “What I’m doing is simply helping supply a snapshot in time here,” said Hart, whose efforts showed four bat species—Eastern red bat, big brown, little brown, and Eastern pipistrelle—inhabiting Erie Bluffs’ hardwoods. “It’s baseline data that we supply now. If we come back later we would hope to see similar findings, but we could see more of a species, such as invasive species, or less.” In a summation of his mammal team findings, Hart noted, less often is good: “Sometimes there’s value in what you do not find. I’m happy to say we did not find any Norway rats or house mice.” Not far from Hart’s mist nets jutting into the green canopy, another measure of determination began with the first pitfall trap set. With shovel and a stack of trap canisters in hand, Timothy J. McCarthy set out on a long hike in search of shrews. Two Northern short-tailed shrews would wander into his buried collection devices, be examined, and released. “I wanted to be involved in this because this land is something that is very unique, and is still left and not developed,” said McCarthy, with the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh. “Also, I have to admit there’s a lot of excitement with an event like this. We have people coming from all over with all types of expertise. There is a learning curve in this for us all.” And a role. Just ask Erie resident Mary Nelson. She is a physical therapist, a hiker, Sierra Club member, and enthusiastic visitor to many of our state parks. She is not a scientist; she is a volunteer: “I’m delighted that DCNR will be acquiring this land and making it a state park,” said Nelson. “I read about the bioblitz in the paper, and I thought the least I can do is volunteer some of my time for our newest state park.” At the end of the 24-hour period, the bioblitz tally totaled 1,199 species. Organizers caution that figure will change significantly as fungi, insects, and other invertebrates are identified in laboratory work. “When the final tallies are in from DCNR’s first-ever bioblitz we will be able to make sound decisions on the park’s future development,” said DCNR Secretary Michael DiBerardinis. “How fitting that Pennsylvania’s 117th state park should be the focal point of this dedicated gathering of keen scientific minds. Bioblitz findings will supply us with an invaluable snapshot of the biological wealth found on this park’s 540 acres.” Coordinated by retired Pennsylvania Game Commission biologist Jerry Hassinger, the event was sponsored by DCNR and its Bureau of State Parks and Office of Conservation Science, in cooperation with the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and the Pennsylvania Biological Survey. The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy acquired the tract on Lake Erie’s shoreline in western Erie County from Reliant Energy in December, using a $1.5 million grant from DCNR. The conservancy will turn over the land to DCNR this summer. The site is composed of several ecological zones, including relict sand dunes formed shortly after glaciation; wetlands fed by natural springs and seeps; a lake plain swamp forest; seep-ravines; creek ravines; and the bluff face itself.

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