Cherokee BioBlitz 2023's Journal

We’re officially 1 week into the Cherokee BioBlitz 2023! In just one week, we’ve already collected 286 observations featuring 203 different species. That’s an amazing job! Our map shows us that we have observations all over the county, from Acworth in the south, to Ball Ground in the north. We’d love to see the entire map filled by the end of the summer!

Each week we’ll also be picking our Observer of the Week. For Week 1, that’s jfornuto! This week, jfornuto found a House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus) and a cicada from the subtribe Cryptotympanina.

Have you attended one of our BioBlitz-themed programs yet? This week, we learned about native plants at R.T. Jones, built our very own bird feeders at Ball Ground, and discovered the best ways to encourage biodiversity at Woodstock. Join us at Rose Creek Library on June 14th at 3 PM for Backyard Biodiversity and Ball Ground Library on June 20th at 11 AM for Growing Your First Garden.

We can’t wait to see what you find next week!

Welcome to the 2023 Cherokee BioBlitz! This project is organized by Woodstock, Rose Creek, R.T. Jones, and Ball Ground Public Libraries, part of the Sequoyah Regional Library System.

We live in a beautiful community, full of diverse plants, animals, and habitats. This summer, we’d love your help in cataloging what can be found in our environment! From June 1st through July 31st, all wild nature findings will be collected here to create a record of Cherokee County’s biodiversity. Make sure to join this project to receive weekly journal updates and interact with other iNaturalist users. Even if you can’t get outside, we still need your help with identifying species. And if you’re near one of our libraries, stop by to learn more about prizes for participating in the challenge!

We also have programs happening in our libraries to help you learn more about our local environment and how to participate in this BioBlitz. We’d love to see you at one of them!

Native Plants 101, June 2nd, 11 AM @ R.T. Jones Library
DIY Bird Feeders, June 2nd, 4 PM @ Ball Ground Library
Biodiversity in Your Backyard, June 6th, 3 PM @ Woodstock Library
Backyard Biodiversity, June 14th, 3 PM @ Rose Creek Library
Growing Your First Garden, June 20th, 11 AM @ Ball Ground Library

This citizen science project goes hand-in-hand with our Summer Discovery 2023: All Together Now program, where we’ll be celebrating our incredible community in Cherokee County! Visit our Summer Discovery website to learn more about our awesome reading challenge and other cool programs happening these next two months.

We can’t wait to see what you discover!