Results of the 2017 Red-Tail Land Conservancy Biodiversity Survey, Delaware and Randolph Counties, Indiana

Abstract

The Red-Tail Land Conservancy (RLC), the Indiana Academy of Science (IAS), the Robert Cooper Audubon Society, and the Oakwood Retreat Center hosted a biodiversity survey or bioblitz in eastcentral Indiana on the 10th and 11th June 2017. The event was held on two properties owned or maintained by RLC; i.e., White River Woods, a 47.4 ha preserved located 9 km southeast of Muncie, Indiana in Delaware County, and McVey Memorial Forest, a 100.4 ha forest located 11 km north of Farmland, Indiana in Randolph County. Over 75 scientists, naturalists, students, and other volunteers on 19 different taxonomic teams observed and reported 1086 taxa during the event. The nineteen taxonomic teams included ants, aquatic macroinvertebrates, bats, bees, beetles, birds, butterflies, odonates, fish, freshwater mussels, herpetofauna, small mammals, moths, mushrooms/fungi and slime molds, non-vascular plants (mosses), singing and non-singing insects, snail-killing flies, spiders, and vascular plants. State endangered species included the northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis; also federally threatened), the Indiana bat (Myotis sodalist; also federally endangered), the cerulean warbler (Setophaga cerulea), the osprey (Pandion haliaetus), and warty spurge (Euphorbia obtusata). In addition shell material of the federal and state endangered Northern Riffleshell (Epioblasma torulosa rangiana), Clubshell (Pleurobema clava), and Rayed Bean (Villosa fabalis) was found but none are still known live on either property. The spider team recorded six state records: Emblyna hentzi (meshweaver), Gladicosa bellamyi (wolf spider), Pirata triens (pirate wolf spider), Schizocosa mccooki (wolf spider), Oxyopes scalaris (western lynx spider), and Xysticus fervidus (ground crab spider). In addition many Delaware County and Randolph County records were reported. This manuscript presents both a brief history of the bioblitz sites and a summary overview of the results. Detailed results are available on the IAS website.