We came, we collected, we started a genomic collection! Greater applications for the results of a 2012 BioBlitz by the UCF Terrestrial Invertebrate Team

In the spring of 2012, the University of Central Florida (UCF) Terrestrial Invertebrate Team, comprised of 33 members, among them biology-oriented undergraduates, graduate students in the biological sciences, and professors, accepted the daunting task of capturing and cataloging every invertebrate species encountered during an intense two-day Bioblitz in the Wekiva Basin region of Central Florida. This region is comprised of three protected areas: Wekiwa Springs State Park, Rock Springs Run State Reserve, and Seminole State Forest. The bulk of the collected material was merely identified to the morphospecies level (within families, for the most part) and numbered close to 1,000 different species spread across all three sampled areas. Based on what is known about the Basin, its numerous habitats, and the known number of existing invertebrate species, it is estimated that only about 8% of the invertebrates were collected from the overall region, which is astounding! A number of rare finds were made as well. Although the primary goal of the trip was to investigate overall invertebrate diversity, the secondary goal was to sow the seeds for the UCF Stuart M. Fullerton Collection of Arthropods’ (UCFC) Genomic Collection, to be comprised of voucher specimens representing the wealth of invertebrates that exist in Central Florida. Bioblitz specimens were given a unique identifier and placed into their own vial filled with 100% ethanol (all specimens were also captured directly into 100%) and are kept in a -80 freezer to await the day that someone wishes to borrow them for phylogenetic analyses.