2026 CA Biodiversity Week

Are you ready to Celebrate CA Biodiversity Week?
Read more to see how you can get involved with regional bioblitz’, nature walks, and more!

The Challenge: 

Using the iNaturalist app, observe 30 species in the Mount Shasta Bioregion between September 5th and 13th. Observations and exploration can be made at any park, wilderness area, or neighborhood in the bioregion! If 30 species feels like too much, any amount will help! Click here to join the project via iNaturalist. Keep reading to learn more!

Why it matters: 

This statewide biodiversity challenge creates a snapshot of the state’s incredible biodiversity and contributes to the California 30×30 Initiative. Not only does a bioblitz celebrate natural spaces, but it empowers “citizens to better understand and protect biodiversity,” according to the National Geographic Society’s website.

According to the Natural Resources Defence Council (NRDC), “Thriving biodiversity is necessary for healthy ecosystems, without which we wouldn’t have a secure food supply, clean water, essential medicines, or, ultimately, a habitable climate.” The more diverse an ecosystem, the more abundant its resources and the more likely it is to withstand climate-related stresses, such as drought, disease, and flooding. Every ecosystem contains species that rely on each other for shelter, food, water, etc. Biodiversity is critical for these codependencies.

Bioblitz Opportunities

This year, we are offering a few different Bioblitz Opportunities! 

Bioregion Bioblitz: The first will take place over the entire CA Biodiversity Week – September 6-14th. Observations and exploration can be made at any park, forest or neighborhood in the Mt. Shasta Bioregion – Siskiyou County, Shasta County, Jackson County, Del Norte County, Humboldt County, and beyond.

More info on additional Bioblitz Events coming soon!

Sáttítla Highlands National Monument: Saturday, September 12th from 10am-2pm.

Register here: https://mountshastaecology.charityproud.org/EventRegistration/Index/29042 

Upcoming Events

Biodiversity Day with the Western Shasta Resource Conservation District!
Saturday, September 5th from 10am-2pm at Whistlestop Park in Redding
Join us and several other environmental organizations at the Western Shasta Resource Conservation District's Biodiversty Day event! There will be lots of fun activities including seed ball making, building a bird or bee house, contributing to cool observations on iNaturalist, playing pollinator games, learning how to help protect the species that make our state so special and more! Stop by and say hi at our seed ball making booth!

Citizen Science Workshop & Garden Greenway Bioblitz
Wednesday, September 9th from 6-7pm at the Mount Shasta Public Library
Join the Mount Shasta Bioregional Ecology Center (MSBEC) and the Siskiyou Land Trust (SLT) for a citizen science workshop on how to use field guides, iNaturalist and CalFlora & CalScape. This workshop will be held on Wednesday, September 9th from 6-7pm at the Mount Shasta Public Library. We'll lead a presentation inside the library and then explore using books and apps outside with a Bioblitz of the Garden Greenway. You'll learn everything you need to know to start exploring our beautiful landscapes and to be ready for California's Biodiversity Week and our upcoming bioblitz'! Bring your smart phone and if you'd like, your favorite field guides for the area. We will have some field guides available for use during the program.

Register here: https://mountshastaecology.charityproud.org/EventRegistration/Index/29114

Friends Family Nature Walk: CA Biodiversity Day – Biodiversity of Sáttítla
Saturday, September 12th from 10am-2pm in Sáttítla Highlands National Monument
(Medicine Lake Highlands – Medicine Lake & Payne's Spring)
Join the Mount Shasta Bioregional Ecology Center for a day of celebrating the biodiversity of Sáttítla Highlands National Monument. We'll become citizen scientists, testing the quality of the water for pH, turbidity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen; cataloguing riparian plants, animals and mushrooms; and collecting and identifying macroinvertebrates in the water before releasing them back to their homes! We'll spend some time exploring with our senses and hopefully have time for a swim and nature journaling! All ages are welcome to this free event! Carpooling and caravaning from McCloud available.

Please register for more information: https://mountshastaecology.charityproud.org/EventRegistration/Index/29042