For 48 hours, from 7pm October 26 through 7pm October 28 we had 26 participants who found 243 species of plants, animals, and fungi in a total of 627 separate observations. Our participants found 60 species completely new to Split Oak Forest and 10 additional species that had been seen by FWC but were not on iNaturalist (please see the Management Plan for their species list). This includes four threatened species: two butterflies, one grass, and one bird species.

Of course, species might continue to trickle in, we have a number of species within the project that have still not been identified to species level. Want to help? Jump in here.

This is less than the 88 new species we found during the Spring BioBlitz, but still good for a park that has been open to the public for 24 years and has already had multiple biological surveys.

Laura Goodding and Species_Spotlight led the pack in discovering new-to-Split Oak species, together finding 27% of our new species.

Species_Spotlight, with his focus on the lakes, found seven new fish species, only two of which were previously known to FWC.

Right behind him is Diane Willis, Ph.D., a grass expert. She found seven new species, including a State-Threatened grass, Florida Jointtail Grass.

Danny Goodding got a spectacular photo of a flying squirrel! He also found five new insect species.

See the species list and breakdown below, for a full species list visit our project's species page:

Laura Goodding

Deathcap (Amanita phalloides)
Small Mocis Moth (Mocis latipes)
Brown Birch Bolete (Leccinum scabrum)
Dog Vomit Slime Mold (Fuligo septica)
Blood Red Russula (Russula rosaceae)
White Arrow Arum (Peltandra sagittifolia)
Broad-tipped Conehead (Neoconocephalus triops)
Live-oak Root Borer (Archodontes melanopus)

Species_Spotlight

Red Swamp Crayfish (Procambus clarkii)
Everglades Pygmy Sunfish (Elassoma evergladei)
Golden Topminnow (Fundulus chrysotus)
Eastern Mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki) already known by FWC
Warmouth (Lepomis gulosus)
Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) already known by FWC
Blue-spotted Sunfish (Enneacanthus gloriosus)
Least Killifish (Hederandria formosa)

Diane Willis

Hairy Bluestem (Andropogon longiberbis)
Torpedo Grass (Panicum repens) FLEPPC Category I Invasive already known by FWC
Warty Panicgrass (Panicum verrucosum) already known by FWC
Hilograss (Panicum conjugatum)
Shortbeak Beaksedge (Rhynchospora nitens)
Florida Jointtail Grass (Coelorachis tuberculosa) State-Threatened

Danny Goodding

Southern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys volans)
Starbellied Orbweaver (Acanthepeira stellata)
Eastern Subterranean Termite (Reticulitermes flavipes)
Florida Tortoise Beetle (Hemisphaerota cyanea)
Polopinus youngi a Florida-endemic Darkling Beetle
Short-winged Bush Cricket (Hapithus brevipennis)

Stacy Klema

Lunate Zale Moth (Zale lunata)
Veiled Polypore (Cryptoporus volvatus)
Diaperis maculata a Darkling Beetle
Moderately Sulcate Warrior Beetle (Pasimachus subsulcatus)
Brochymena arborea a rough stink bug
Sosippus floridanus a wolf spider

Valerie Anderson (me!)

Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) (already known by FWC)
Shoestring Fern (Vittaria lineata) (already known by FWC)
Slender Blazing Star (Liatris gracilis)
Byssus Skipper (Problema byssus) State-Threatened
Palmetto Skipper (Euphyes arpa) State-Threatened
Trametes cubensis a poroid bracket mushroo

Brian Silverman

Margined Leatherwing (Chauliognathus marginatus)
Lined Topminnow (Fundulus lineolatus)
Taillight Shiner (Notropis maculatus)
Apache Jumping Spider (Phidippus apacheanus)
Leafy Oak Gall Wasp (Andricus quercusfoliatus)

nonrandom

Water Cowbane (Oxypolis filiformis) (already known by FWC)
Nodding Clubmoss (Lycopodiella cernua)
Carolina Mantleslug (Philomicus carolinianus)
Theatops posicus a bark centipede
Humped Bladderwort (Utricularia gibba)

Mary Keim

Sarsaparilla Vine (Smilax pumila) (already known by FWC)
Laurel Dodder (Cassythia filiformis)
Odontocorynus larvatus (a flower weevil)
Licorice Weed (Scoparia dulcis) (already known by FWC)

Randy Snyder

Timulla vagans a species of velvet ant
Rabidoza hentzi (a species of wolf spider)
Violet Bromeliad Fly (Copestylum barei)

Michael Gaithe

End Band Net-winged Beetle (Calopteron terminale)
Honey Mushroom (Armillaria mellea)

Nathalie van Turnhout

Florida Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens) State-Threatened (already known by FWC)
Tall Yelloweyed Grass (Xyris platylepis)