Learning about Strathmore’s biodiversity
By Florence Kalia Times Contributor
Strathmore is home to many unique creatures and animals. Through Strathmore’s Biodiversity project, local residents can help document the creatures see and heard in Strathmore and become a citizen scientist through the iNaturalist app or website.
According to Sean Feagan, creator of Strathmore’s Biodiversity project, the initiative allows anyone to monitor the area’s flora and fauna, and add to the project’s database.
“It’s amazing what you can see if you look closely – I think you can be into your head and it’s important to take a moment and observe things around you,” said Feagan, a wildlife biologist and member of the Alberta Society of Professional Biologists.
The iNaturalist app and website is an attempt to “categorize the biodiversity of Strathmore,” added Feagan. “All the different types of species that live in Strathmore, ranging from plants, fungi, microorganisms and wildlife.”
Projects like this one have also been started up in Calgary, including the City Nature Challenge. Like iNaturalist, it is a global initiative with hundreds of participants. “I thought it would be cool to do a similar thing for Strathmore,” said Feagan.
To join and help document living things around Strathmore, all you need to do is create an iNaturalist account through any phone or computer browser.
“There is no need to be an expert at all,” explained Feagan. “And no need to identify anything if you are unsure of what it is.”
To add findings to iNaturalist, take a photo or record an audio sound and upload to your iNaturalist account. For photos, an image recognition algorithm in the software helps to identify what creature you have found. You can suggest what an organism is by looking at it and then submit it. There is no need for guessing either because identifiers – people who identify the pictures and verify the findings – can do that for others. If you are unsure you can simply classify it as a plant or animal and other people can help determine what it is. There have been species found through iNaturalist that are bio indicators which show an ecosystem’s health.
“This is important because data can be collected to study things like migration patterns and phenology (the study of cyclic and seasonal natural phenomena, especially in relation to climate, plant and animal life) to see what is in your area, and as a marker to study climate,” said Feagan.
“Sometimes we find rare species or species at risk. We are on this planet together and it’s cool to see what is around you and observe those things. There are lots of benefits to be more present and aware of the world around you.”
Historically, the Strathmore area was native prairie with a lot of wetlands, but that has changed through urban development and things such as wetland filling.
“Just because it is a developed area doesn’t mean there aren’t species around,” said Feagan. “In fact, because of all the trees being planted, there may be more tree dwelling species in Strathmore than there used to be 150 years ago.”
The iNaturalist community has many projects, findings and contributors collecting Strathmore and the world’s biodiversity. To join the project, sign up for an iNaturalist account (www.inaturalist.org/signup) and log a photo of a plant or animal in Strathmore.
To learn more, visit inaturalist.org/projects and search Strathmore’s Biodiversity to become a citizen scientist in the community.