–Are you up for the challenge?
by Elizabeth Perdomo
We are busy preparing for the upcoming April 30 – May 3 City Nature Challenge (CNC). This is a volunteer opportunity open to all Texas Master Naturalists and anyone living in or visiting the Rio Grande Valley. What a great opportunity to participate in important Citizen Science observations, to get outside, to enjoy some safe outdoor time with your family, children, grandchildren, co-workers, or neighbors.
If you haven’t yet downloaded the iNaturalist app to your phone and/or computer, please do so! It’s free and there are some tutorials for use on the app: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-_sbtUCDv6j3q_Il56erUU6t6KWWwZYO
Our Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) City Nature Challenge page is now up…
“Join the Rio Grande Valley World Birding Centers, Texas Master Naturalists, Texas Parks and Wildlife, The Nature Conservancy, Audubon Society, and many others in a fun challenge to see which city can document the most species during April 30 – May 3, 2021. It is easy to participate by joining the event or making observations on your own using the iNaturalist app. With the app, you just take a photo of the plant or animal and the community will help identify which species it is. Any observation in the metropolitan area of the LRGV will count during the four day challenge. You can participate by exploring the life in your backyard, in your local park, or on a field trip with your local naturalist group. You can also help with IDs for other people’s observations to increase our species count, come to a bioblitz, or even hold your own event!”
Area CNC Coordinators are:
- LRGV – John Brush jbrush@mcallen.net
- South Texas Border Chapter – Elizabeth Perdomo mateliza@aol.com
- Rio Grande Valley Chapter – Tira Wilmoth sswilmoth@gmail.com
Even though you don’t have to “join” the event to have your observations count in the CNC, it is very helpful. Joiningallows you to keep up with what things are observed, by whom, and where on the LRGV map. The map is located on the LRGV CNC page. To join, click on “Log in or Sign up” on the top right hand side of the page. Check it out here:
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2021-lower-rio-grande-valley
And, just for fun, also “join” the City Nature Challenge page which will document participation and species found in the entire state of Texas and show how the LRGV stacks up against Austin or Houston. In all cases, there are THREE categories documenting: Species, Observers, and Participant numbers.
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/texas-city-nature-challenge-2021-cities
If you would like some practice before the official Challenge begins, go out in your yard, in your neighborhood, walk down the alley, or come by and begin documenting species at our own South Texas Border Chapter-TMN Pollinator Garden. Please Join this project, too!
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/stbc-tmn-pollinator-garden-at-st-george-s
Although participants can take and upload species observations in ANY part of the LRGV, day or night, South Texas Border Chapter would like to focus on covering areas in Hidalgo and Starr Counties. However, if you are out in another area, say South Padre Island, during those days, you should observe away! But, we want to get some places covered that might be otherwise missed. We are coordinating our efforts with the Rio Grande Valley Chapter-TMN, so if you plan to be somewhere in Cameron or Willacy Counties during the challenge, do let me know and I will pass that on to their chapter CNC Coordinator. Although we could have a multitude of people in any area on the same day, it is likely folks would pick up on, see, or make observations on a variety of different things.
I will be asking some of you in the STBC to cover particular areas. Others may WANT to cover particular parks, sections, road right of ways, or parks. If you would like to commit to any particular places, PLEASE LET ME KNOW! Also, if you know of a park, place, site to include on our list, please let me know.
REMEMBER: OBSERVATIONS can be made of anything living or once living, even scat, feathers, or tracks. Don’t forget to look under rocks and roll over dead logs. Lots of life is found there. It’s not just trees, shrubs, flowers, and birds. Remember all of the other critters, large and small! Moths, butterflies, cocoons, buggies of all sorts. Moss and lichen and fungi, snails, and other shells.
After the CNC observation days are complete, we will need assistance in verifying and identifying observations. But, that is another topic altogether. We are hoping to have some sort of discussion/training on that aspect as well. I will let you know if/when/how that occurs.
Let me know if you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas. Not only do we need YOUR participation, we need for you to encourage others to join in! Help out any way you can. Get your neighborhood, your clubs/organizations, scout troops, family, and friends involved. We always NEED more participation in this fun, educational citizen science event.