FAQs: Biodiversity Challenge
WHEN CAN I START MAKING OBSERVATIONS THAT WILL COUNT FOR THE CRD’S BIODIVERSITY CHALLENGE? WHEN SHOULD I STOP?
All observations made starting on Friday, May 21 at 12:00 am (PST) until Monday, May 24 at 11:59 pm will count for the CRD Biodiversity Challenge. Observation time-stamped for May 21-24 may be uploaded until Sunday May 30th.
CAN I UPLOAD PHOTOS DURING THE BIODIVERSITY CHALLENGE THAT I TOOK PRIOR TO THESE DATES?
No, only observations made during May 21-24 will count for the Biodiversity Challenge.
WHAT ARE THE GEOGRAPHIC BOUNDARIES OF THE BIODIVERSITY CHALLENGE?
The map shown on the project page defines the boundaries of the challenge.
DO I NEED TO JOIN THE PROJECT AND ADD MY OBSERVATIONS TO IT FOR THEM TO BE INCLUDED?
No. All observations made within the geographic boundary between May 21 and 24 will automatically be added to the project. In order to receive project notifications such as journal entries and be eligible to win prizes, you must join the project. Join by visiting the CRD Biodiversity Challenge project page and clicking “join project” in the upper right hand corner.
WHAT KINDS OF OBSERVATIONS SHOULD I MAKE DURING THE BIODIVERSITY CHALLENGE?
Any observations of WILD plants, animals or fungi that you find in and around the capital region can be included. Observations of living or dead organisms, or evidence of organisms, like shells, cones, tracks, scat, feathers, etc., are accepted.
WHAT IF I MAKE AN OBSERVATION OF SOMETHING I KNOW ISN'T NATIVE TO THE CAPITAL REGION? SHOULD I STILL RECORD IT?
We encourage everyone to focus as much as possible on making observations of native species. These are species that originated in this area, as opposed to cultivated species (like many garden plants), invasive species (like weeds), or captive species (like your pet dog!)
If you do make an observation of a non-native species, mark it as captive/cultivated in your iNaturalist entry. Watch this video on how to mark observations as captive/cultivated.
WHAT IF I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE ORGANISM IS THAT I TOOK A PICTURE OF? HOW DO MY OBSERVATIONS GET IDENTIFIED?
If you can’t identify something that you photographed, you can still submit an observation. Capture and upload clear photo(s), and add a label with as much detail as you can. This may be as general as “flower,” “mushroom,” or “bird.” iNaturalist will use image recognition to suggest identifications for your observations, based on visually similar observations made by other people. You can choose to use this as your species ID however the software can make mistakes so you may be better off using the more general label. After your observation is uploaded, it can be viewed by the entire iNaturalist community who will help you identify your observation by suggesting a species, offering an alternative, or agreeing with your identification.
DO I HAVE TO MAKE OBSERVATIONS USING THE APP ON A SMART PHONE? WHAT IF I WANT TO USE A REAL CAMERA?
While it’s convenient to use the iNaturalist app to make observations, it’s fine if you want to use a real camera. You can upload your observations using the Upload tool on iNaturalist, and if your camera doesn’t have a GPS, you can drop a pin to indicate where you made each observation. If you’re planning on making most of your Biodiversity Challenge observations using a camera, we recommend watching this short video on how to best use iNaturalist’s Photo Uploader.
HOW DO OBSERVATIONS IN INATURALIST BECOME RESEARCH GRADE? DO MY OBSERVATIONS HAVE TO GET TO RESEARCH GRADE TO COUNT FOR THE BIODIVERSITY CHALLENGE?
For an observation to become “Research Grade”: (1) it must have a photo, (2) it must have an accurate date and location, (3) it cannot be a captive or cultivated organism, and (4) over 2/3rds of the people adding IDs must agree. It’s important to check back on your observations to see if anyone has added an identification or left a comment, possibly asking you to provide a bit more information about what you saw. All verifiable observations (photo, location, date and is not captive or cultivated) will count for the Biodiversity Challenge, even if they do not reach Research Grade. Visit iNaturalist’s FAQs for more information about Research Grade observations.
CAN I HELP IDENTIFY WHAT OTHER PEOPLE FOUND DURING THE BIODIVERSITY CHALLENGE? WHAT IF I'M NOT AN EXPERT IN ANYTHING?
Yes! In the same way that anyone can be an observer, anyone can help identify observations. In iNaturalist, go to the Biodiversity Challenge project, click “Observations” and you’ll see an “Identify” button pop up. Click this to see all the observations from the Biodiversity Challenge that still need to be identified. For more information, here is a short video about identifying observations.
WHAT ARE THE DATA USED FOR?
Observations data collected on iNaturalist is available to anyone. iNaturalist observations can be downloaded and are often used in scientific publications. Data is often shared with the Global Biodiversity Information Facility as part of the iNaturalist Research-Grade Observations dataset or can be used at a local level. Often the most immediate use of iNaturalist data happens locally: a discovery of a new-to-that-place species, someone documenting a population of a rare or invasive species that wasn't previously known, better understanding of where particular species are in that area, etc.
WHO CAN I CONTACT WITH MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE BIODIVERSITY CHALLENGE?
Please email watersheds@crd.bc.ca
This information was adapted from https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2020/journal/33377-city-nature-challenge-frequently-asked-questions.
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