By Kate Hill

Staff Writer

On Saturday, Sept. 26, Cazenovia College invited children of all ages to learn about local fish, aquatic plants, amphibians and invertebrates during the fifth annual “BioBlitz” event at Lakeland Park.

Cazenovia College students in four courses — Teaching & Learning, Field Botany, Environmental Science, and Life In and On the Lake — set up stations along the lakefront and under the pavilion.

Participants learned about organisms commonly found in local lakes, wetlands and forests, and had the opportunity to try kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding, netting and identifying fish, sampling plants, and viewing microscopic organisms.

This year’s event also included new aspects, such as bingo and other activities presented by Cazenovia College’s elementary education majors.

“The goal is to provide an opportunity for kids of all ages to experience the study of aquatic life and possibly become interested in pursuing an education in a STEM-related field,” said Tim Greene, director of communications and marketing for Cazenovia College.

Thad Yorks, professor of biology and environmental biology, added that the BioBlitz is also intended to help the college students to develop teamwork and leadership skills, both of which are highly valued by employers in the current job market.

“I basically put students who have helped at least once in the past in charge of each station, and then backfill with freshmen and any other students who have not been part of [the event] before,” said Yorks. “[That places] the experienced students in a position of responsibility for leading a small team. Prior to this, many of them have had very limited opportunities to be put in a position of responsibility when it comes to educating others about something [they] find interesting and important. [BioBlitz] is also really valuable for environmental biology majors, [who] see how very passionate and caring their [Cazenovia] is about its lake and other green spaces.”

The college took several safety precautions to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

In addition to requiring face coverings and providing hand-sanitizing stations, the organizers spaced out the activity stations and encouraged a one-way flow of participants through the event.

Yorks estimates that the total attendance for the day was close to 150 people.

“Groups came in at a steady trickle over almost the entire three hours, so we didn’t have an issue spreading the groups out with the stations spread out over much of the park,” he said.

For more information on BioBlitz, contact Yorks at 315-655-7148 or [email protected].