LOS ANGELES (AP) — Scientists will fan out across a California desert valley to take an inventory of everything that lives there.
They will record the presence of species including birds, bats, toads, crickets, coyotes and native plants.
Sophie Parker with the Nature Conservancy said Wednesday that it's been 45 years since researchers have scoured Amargosa Valley near the northern edge of the Mojave Desert.
The region east of Death Valley is home to a major river and two species of desert fish, 300 bird species an endangered vole rodent.
The conservancy and the federal Bureau of Land Management will host the weekend's "BioBlitz" to document how the valley's biodiversity has changed over nearly half a century.
It will take place from Friday through Sunday.
It spans 26 miles of the Amargosa River.