On Sunday, September 22 on the occasion of World River Day, scientists and citizens met in Konitsa, in the framework of the 4th “The Home River BioBlitz – Discovering Aoos” to explore and celebrate the largest free-flowing river in Europe, Aoos.
Almost 50 people came to the Bridge of Konitsa in order to observe the natural world -in and around the river-, to discover the variety of animal and plant organisms and to collect data for the scientific community, using the application iNaturalist. The activity was implemented/coordinated by MedINA, with the enthusiastic support of scientists and the active participation of citizens, who brought valuable knowledge and a lot of observation respectively.
During the day, we walked to the Holy Monastery of Panagia in Stomio and took pictures of most of the organisms we encountered and then we met at the “Gefyri” Hotel where Nikos Boukas, Biologist and collaborator of the BCL laboratory of V.Kati at the University of Ioannina, spoke about the variety of Odontognae (dragonflies) of Aoos. According to the iNaturalist application, from the data collected and now available for use in scientific research or applied actions for nature protection and conservation, they managed to collect more than 250 records of 85 different species of plants and animals!
The 4th “The Home River BioBlitz” took place in Aoos, in an effort to highlight the ecological situation of the river and the pressures that it is under, both in Greece and Albania, due to planned projects for installation of small and large hydroelectric projects. Aoos/Vjosa River is one of the last free-flowing rivers (without dams or other artificial barriers), having recently been designated as the last wild river in Europe!
It is worth mentioning that everyone can organize their own “Home River BioBlitz” with excursions and recordings in the river, tributary and/or stream of their area. Any small or large observation can contribute to science! You can find more details here.
