2022 City Nature Challenge! Heart of Texas Area

Hello again everyone! My name is Aaron Lincoln. I'm a Texas Master Naturalist from the Heart of Texas Chapter in Waco. Thank you to everyone who helped participate in our event last year! It was very successful! Here's a link in case you want to check out how we did:
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2021-heart-of-texas

For anyone who isn't aware, the City Nature Challenge, is a wonderful time during April when cities across the world have a friendly competition to see who can make the most observations and find the most species. Apart from being a lot of fun, the challenge makes a real contribution to science and helps guide policy sometimes in bigger cities once decision makers see what kind of organisms are present in the area. You can find more info here:
http://citynaturechallenge.org/

Everything is done on iNaturalist, so you don't have to do anything different, just get out there and make observations. There's usually 4 days for observations followed by a week to upload and make identifications. I really think that our area with Hillsboro, Waco, Temple, Killeen, Belton, and outlying areas really have something to offer, especially as the area continues to grow and development replaces natural areas.

Last year's results were impressive, but I think we can do even better this year. Getting the word out to as many as possible and increasing our participants is key. Please feel free to tag anyone you can think of in this post and promote whenever possible. I'm also working with folks at NPAT to get access to several prairies in Falls County that I never knew existed.

It's still early in the planning phases, so I will continue to make updates as they come. Observation dates will be April 29th through May 2nd with identifications being made the following week. Our area includes the following counties: Somervell, Bosque, Hamilton, Hill, Coryell, McLennan, Bell, Milam, and Falls. Here is the link to the project page for this year:
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2022-heart-of-texas

由使用者 bosqueaaron bosqueaaron2021年12月04日 05:55 所貼文

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Woooo hooooo!!!!! :-D

發佈由 sambiology 大約 3 年 前

Please feel free to tag anyone else y'all think might be interested!

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前
發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

Looking forward to it!

發佈由 lovebirder 超過 2 年 前

We can also post our plans here to avoid overlap or to meet up. I plan on hitting Meridian State Park and other Bosque County locations on Friday. Saturday will be various parks around Lake Whitney. Sunday is back roads north of Gatesville, and Monday I will explore the Riesel prairie and Cameron Park in Waco. I'll do mothing each night around Clifton.

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

I’m looking forward to this…I missed last year. Thank you for the reminder @bosqueaaron

發佈由 p_n_e 超過 2 年 前
發佈由 p_n_e 超過 2 年 前

Looking forward to it!

發佈由 chenderson 超過 2 年 前

@michelle_lopez @bananalady These two are new Master Naturalists and actively using iNat. You may want to add them to the list.

發佈由 chenderson 超過 2 年 前

@bananalady @lindabu are interested

發佈由 chenderson 超過 2 年 前

Great!

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

On Friday, April 29th, Sandy from High Hope Ranch in Glen Rose is going to allow us access. From 9:00 to 10:30 am she is having a "nature lollygag" after which, we will be free to roam the ranch for CNC. With over 20 miles of trails, and 400 acres if I remember correctly, there'll be plenty to observe at the prairies, ponds, hills, overhangs, seeps, and wooded areas. This is a good opportunity for someone new to iNat to be with others and get some pointers. Chime in if anyone is interested! Here's the link to a project for the ranch
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/citizen-scientist-at-high-hope-ranch
@squaylei2000 I know you're not from this area, but I see that you come down to Glen Rose and Meridian often. Maybe you'd be interested in joining us along with @obidaddy?
Maybe @jwn wants to turncoat and join us too?

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前
發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

I'll be participating! My usual areas are Lake Waco Wetlands, Mother Neff SP, Cameron Park, and/or McLennan County Park. I'd include the Carleen Bright Arboretum but that has been closed for months now and I've no clue when it will reopen.

發佈由 baylorbear78 超過 2 年 前

@squaylei2000 see the post a few lines above this.

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

I'm keeping High Hope Ranch in mind for that Friday. For sure during the CNC, I will be in SW Hamilton County on private property and I may make it to City Lake, the (sometimes) wetlands on 211, City Park and Pecan Creek Park in Hamilton.

發佈由 lovebirder 超過 2 年 前
發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

I hardly ever see anything but I love to try

發佈由 ensiform 超過 2 年 前

The Lake Waco Wetlands will be hosting night hikes each Friday in April at 7:00pm, one of which is during the CNC. Hosted by Cameron Park Zoo staff, it's a great chance to see some night life at the wetlands.

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前
發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

Good news! Dr. Back, entomologist and professor at Baylor will be bringing his mothing gear to the night hike at the Waco wetlands on April 29th. That should be a blast and, as far as I know, there hasn't been any mothing at the wetlands, so we should see some neat things!

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

@curicta

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前
發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

Hopefully, the small amount of rain we just got (1/3 inch in Hamilton) will help things pop out this week! In Hamilton County, we are in Exceptional Drought and most of our Heart of Texas CNC area is in Extreme to Exceptional Drought. It looks like Milam, Bell and Falls are in a little better shape.
https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?TX

發佈由 lovebirder 超過 2 年 前

We got an inch here in Bosque, and it's started up again. Lookin good! The High Hope event and later at the Waco Wetlands is still on for anyone who wants to join!

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

3353 Co Rd. 2009
Glen Rose, TX 76043
is the address to the High Hope Ranch tomorrow for all interested parties. Anyone going to the Lake Waco Wetlands just google it.

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

Whew! That was exhausting! I hope everyone had as much fun as I did. Looks like we found some neat stuff. I'll be uploading and helping with IDs over the next week.

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

I don't know if I am missing the link on the project page to identify observations in the project, but I think this link works:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identify?project_id=124418
We have through the end of Sunday, May 8 to get everything uploaded and identified, right?

發佈由 lovebirder 超過 2 年 前

Yes, that's correct. The link looks good too.

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

Holy cow! I think I've got all my observations submitted! I'll go back through to make sure I didn't miss anything. Now, more id-ing!

發佈由 lovebirder 超過 2 年 前

Huge thanks to everyone who participated! My family had some medical emergencies this week, so I was a little late getting everything uploaded. Got my last one in at 11:54 on Sunday and @lovebirder was right there IDing them as they came in! Thank you! Everyone else also id awesome jobs helping with IDs. We should see some preliminary numbers coming in the morning, but we're definitely all winners here. I know I saw lots of neat, new stuff and even added several birds to my life list.

There's a lot to sort through, but if anyone has, or saw especially rare or great photos, the organizers would like to share them with the rest of the CNC crowd. Just go ahead and share the link/s on here and I'll pass them along.

Thanks again!

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

Thanks for organizing it. I don't come close to the totals for the top observers, so I look for new things to me, and I had fun doing it.

發佈由 chenderson 超過 2 年 前

There were so many cool observations! I know we found some new species in our area, which is incredible. Thanks, Aaron, and everyone who contributed in in any way. Very fun and informative. Now, time to rest;)

發佈由 lovebirder 超過 2 年 前

Just for fun, here's the link to the D/FW challenge if anyone wants to see how they did.
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2022-dallas-fort-worth

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

For potential use by organizers:
First Texas iNat observation of Timulla dubitata: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/114274932#activity_identification_6362d16c-712a-4ba2-9fa7-301a328309ea
First Texas iNat observation of Asphondylia betheli: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/114274639

發佈由 lovebirder 超過 2 年 前

Wow. Those are cool. Thanks!

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

https://cuefornature.wordpress.com/2022/05/10/summary-of-the-city-nature-challenge-2022-lower-rio-grande-valley/

This is a really neat work-up done by our friends in the RGV. Shows some of what can be done with the data we gather during the CNC.

發佈由 bosqueaaron 超過 2 年 前

Craig Hensley at Texas Nature Trackers sent me a neat work-up of the final summary of our project in pdf format. If anyone would like me to email it to them, send me your address :)

發佈由 bosqueaaron 約 2 年 前

I'd like a copy of the work-up. My email is hendersonins@sbcglobal.net. Thank you in advance. Carolyn Henderson

發佈由 chenderson 約 2 年 前

Fantastic. I requested via email. Thanks, Aaron

發佈由 lovebirder 約 2 年 前

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