Turkey is a country that connects Asia and
Europe, exhibiting characteristics of a small continent in terms of biological
diversity. It has seven geographic regions, each with distinct ecosystems and
climates.
Species
Biological invasions are one of the most
important components of the current global change and a serious threat to the
conservation of biodiversity and to the functioning of ecosystems, apart from
the socio-economic problems they involve. The rapid detection of potentially
invasive species in the region is of great importance in order to prevent major
infestations and reduce the potential impacts they may cause. The aim of this
project is to collect information on the distribution of a group of alien
species in Turkey and to raise public awareness.
How to participate
Joining the BioBlitz on alien species in
Türkiye is very easy!
Just follow these three steps:
1. Download the iNaturalist app (for android
or iOS) to your smartphone or tablet, access the web iNaturalist.org through
your computer, and create an account.
2. You can join the Türkiye Alien Bioblitz 2023
project in iNaturalist to keep track of the observations made by you and by
other volunteers involved.
3. During the weekend from May 26th to 28th,
record all your observations using the inaturalist app though photographs of
the invasive alien species in Türkiye that you detect.
The project will be open beyond this weekend,
so whenever you find one of these invasive alien species, take the opportunity
to continue documenting it in the project at iNaturalist.