Thank you to all of you who joined us at Heron Haven for the 2021 City Nature Challenge! It was another fun morning interacting with so many nature enthusiasts from across the area, enjoying the peace and tranquility of nature, and spotting so many amazing birds, plants, and other creatures that live right here in our city. And here we share the news from this year’s results.
A Collaborative Event
But first, a big thank you to our community partners for sharing their time and knowledge with everyone throughout the day – and Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium for spear-heading the local effort here in Omaha. For the event, we were joined by experts from Heron Haven, College of Saint Mary, Nebraska Master Naturalists, Pottawattamie Conservation, Bellevue University, Pheasants Forever, and Creighton University.
It was so rewarding to see people with all levels of experience – from small children just learning about the natural world to photographers, dedicated bird enthusiasts, and more – pointing out their discoveries and sharing information alongside professional biologists and other members of the local scientific community. The energy was positive and friendly with everyone – professional and amateur alike – bonding over a mutual love of living things.
A big highlight among the kids this year was the tub full of frogs caught from the wetland by several biology students from College of Saint Mary. And for the adults, a large barred owl and several egrets and herons were among some of the favorites.
So, How Did We Do?
Community bonding aside, the City Nature Challenge is also a worldwide collaboration – a chance for cities all over the globe to engage their citizens in making as many observations of living things in their urban areas as they can during a four-day period. And with more than 430 cities participating this year, the worldwide total reached nearly 1.3 million observations contributing to valuable citizen science. Here in Omaha, nearly 250 species were recorded throughout the city during the event. If you’d like to see how the other cities fared, how many species were found, and how many people participated, check out the full City Nature Challenge results.
Let’s Continue the Fun
Our fascination with the natural world doesn’t have to end with this year’s City Nature Challenge. You can continue to use the iNaturalist app to record the plants and animals you spot wherever you go. It’s a great way to learn more about our world and interact with other nature enthusiasts who are as enthusiastic about nature as you are. Plus, your observations contribute valuable information that help scientists develop studies and plans to protect the living things who share our world.
