City Nature Challenge 2021: The Maritimes Umbrella Project's Journal

The City Nature Challenge is rapidly approaching! This is a great opportunity to introduce our friends, family, and neighbours to iNaturalist. To assist with 'spreading the word' the Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) is offering a free webinar.

April 7, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. iNaturalist has become one of the world’s most popular nature apps and the Canadian Wildlife Federation has led the charge in bringing it to Canada. It’s more than just an app; there’s an entire online platform complete with image recognition technology along with a growing community to support you in your discoveries. Join us in leaning the ins and outs of using the app and iNaturalist.ca to record wildlife observations - from the tiniest bug to the tallest tree and everything in between. You’ll then be equipped and ready to take part in the City Nature Challenge, the largest annual initiative on iNaturalist, happening April 30 to May 3, 2021.

https://cwf-fcf.org/en/resources/downloads/webinars/public/inaturalist-canada-how-to.html
https://cwf-fcf.org/en/explore/inaturalist/cnc/

If you are looking to get inspired watch the recently released global CNC promo video!

by Sean McCann (ibycter). Sean is a naturalist and spider enthusiast living in Wolfville Nova Scotia.

I would like to encourage you, during the upcoming City Nature Challenge, to try to find some spiders around your home and in the field that can be included in your iNaturalist submissions!

You may find many spiders just by careful searching, looking on surfaces such as fences, walls, and bare ground. One of the most obvious groups are the jumping spiders. These can be photographed relatively easily, and luckily many species can be identified with just good quality photograph of their patterns.

Two species you may encounter are the introduced Salticus scenicus (zebra jumper), and the wall-loving Platycryptus undatus (gray wall jumper). Both of these may be found on buildings, but also may be found on trees and fences. They are day-active spiders, and like a warm sunny day to go out hunting.

Keep your eyes out in forested habitats for the large and beautiful forest wolf spider, Hogna frondicola .

These attractive spiders are mating this time of year, and so both males and females can be found out hunting for food and mates. These are large brown spiders with a gray stripe down the back, and often one or two pairs of small dark spots on the abdomen.

If you want to find vegetation-dwelling spiders, try taking an umbrella, holding it under a bush, and vigorously beating the bush with a stick. This is an excellent way to find spiders hidden in the leaves and flowers that might not be readily apparent. You may find web builders such as orb weavers, or perhaps crab spiders this way. Look for Misumena vatia (the goldenrod crab spider) and the introduced Araneus diadematus (diadem orb weaver).

Go out, have fun, and try to get some spider images! I recommend getting images of the dorsal surface (the back) showing all the coloration, and if possible, a view from the front showing the eye arrangement. Enjoy your time finding and observing spiders!

Photograph anterior views!
Hogna frondicola
Habronattus borealis

Looking for a way to participate in the upcoming City Nature Challenge (April 30 – May 3)?

Perhaps Maritime birders, naturalists, and new iNatters can help compile/share bird songs from our communities – no need to go outdoors – just open a window!

The free iNaturalist app includes an 'add an observation’ feature that offers the option to record a sound in addition to the standard take a photo.

Currently 2,105 people have shared photos of 386 species from Nova Scotia in iNaturalist but only 90 have shared sound recordings of 109 species. (https://tinyurl.com/u8pyyjma)

It will be interesting to see how these stats and those from NB and PEI have changed by the end of the 4-day challenge.

Practice using the app 'record sound' feature today.