In celebration of local biodiversity, the third annual Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz will be held on Friday, Sept. 22 at Galveston’s McGuire Dent Recreation Center, 2222 28th Street Galveston, TX 77550 at 4:30 p.m.
The BioBlitz will be an opportunity for residents to join other nature-lovers for an early evening lecture and adventure. Attendees will learn about native pollinators from local scientists, nature photographers and native pollinator expert Scott Buckel.
There will also be a tour of the McGuire Dent Victory Garden with the team from Galveston’s Own Farmers Market that maintains the garden.
The Blitz is part of a month-long event in September when people across the country compete to see who can spot the most pollinators in their region. In 2022, several hundred pollinators were spotted in Galveston, but this year, sponsors of the event feel confident that number will be exceeded.
During September residents can also participate by downloading the iNaturalist app and visiting their favorite park to begin documenting pollinators they find. The parks include:
- East End Lagoon – 1919 Boddeker Rd
- Corp Woods Nature Sanctuary – TX 168
- Victory Garden/Galveston’s Own Farmers Market Youth Gardeners Program at Burnet – 5501 S
- West End Dog Recreation Area – 3115 83rd St
- Sandhill Crane Soccer Complex Observation Deck – 3338 7 Mile Rd
- Lafitte’s Cove – 3503 Eckert Dr
- Edward and Helen Oppenheimer Bird Observatory – 13102 Stewart Rd
- Galveston Island State Park – 14901 FM 3005
- Wright Cuney Recreation Center – 718 41st St
Community partners in the blitz include City of Galveston Parks and Recreation, Galveston’s Own Farmers Market, Galveston Island Nature Tourism Council, Galveston Island Tree Conservancy, the Clear Lake Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas and Better Parks for Galveston.
Nationally the Blitz is hosted through a partnership between the National Recreation and Park Association and the Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation with the goal of raising public awareness of the pollinator crisis and encouraging local action through public parks and recreation programs.