Mbombela takes part in global nature event
MBOMBELA - Nature lovers recently participated in the global event, the City Nature Challenge 2023, helping identify over 70 species of indigenous flora and fauna in the region.
Hosted by iNaturalist, the Lowveld Botanical Society (BotSoc) helped initiate the project in Mbombela, encouraging locals to take part and submit as many observations of wild plants, animals and insects on the iNaturalist app as possible.
The project took place from April 28 until May 1.
According to www.inaturalist.org, the project is one of the largest community science events with the purpose of helping the world better understand and take care of the nature that lives in and around urban areas.
Mbombela participants submitted a total of 108 observations, including 74 species of flora and fauna, according to the stats on the iNaturalist website. These observations included rodents, antelope, butterflies, mosses, trees, spiders and birds, to name a few.
The submissions included a photo of the observation, the common name and the scientific name.
The app allows anyone to access it and make submissions, and hosts several experts to help identify flora and fauna that an observer cannot.
Cats, dogs and humans were not accepted in the official observations.
While the City Nature Challenge has come to an end, the app can still be used to submit sightings for scientific data, and people can join other projects currently taking place on the app. (Dicronorrhina derbyana oberthueri), an example of one of the > Photo: Chelsea Pieterse