On Saturday, April 27, 2024 Heartland Conservation Alliance (HCA) is hosting the Heartland Nature Celebration at 9106 Chestnut Ave, Kansas City, from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. (weather permitting). It is one of many events happening during the weekend bioblitz called “The City Nature Challenge.”
The City Nature Challenge runs April 26 – 29 with events happening across the Kansas City Metro Area all weekend. HCA’s Heartland Nature Celebration is an outdoor event consisting of guided flora and fauna identification hikes using the phone application iNaturalist. The City Nature Challenge is a fun, friendly, worldwide competition to see which metro area can identify the most wildlife and vegetation. When you make a discovery with iNaturalist on the guided hikes, it counts toward the Kansas City Metro Areas’ City Nature Challenge.
Participants of the Heartland Nature Celebration can participate in guided hikes led by HCA staff. HCA staff will help individuals identify different species that are seen along the trails. During these hikes, participants will become citizen scientists as they collect data on iNaturalist, which will be uploaded to the app and contribute toward Kansas City’s growing count of natural discoveries. The goal of this challenge is to have people engage with and learn about the flora and fauna in their communities and backyards. HCA staff will provide technological assistance and be able to answer any questions during the event.
The Heartland Nature Celebration will also have educational booths from organizations such as the Kansas City Zoo and Aquarium, Center for Neighborhoods @ UMKC, Johnson County Master Naturalist KSU extension, Jerusalem Farms, Missouri Organics, Cornerstones of Care (Build Trybe), City of Kansas City, My Region Wins!, Missouri Department of Conservation, and Good Oak.
Gathering observations using iNaturalist is a helpful way to collect important information about our city’s wildlife and vegetation. More observations will mean we have gathered more information for future city plans to protect natural resources for future generations.
“The Heartland Nature Celebration is a welcoming event to nature and its flora and fauna species,” Magali Rojas, HCA’s Environmental Justice Program Manager, said. “It provides a space for you to learn and have fun, as well as to remind you that you can be a citizen scientist by simply taking a picture and uploading it to a neat phone app. Additionally, it introduces the public to partner organizations leading efforts by protecting our natural resources where they can volunteer at.”
The Heartland Conservation Alliance is a non-profit that works with partners to protect, connect, and restore the Blue River watershed and its urban greenspaces for the benefit and enjoyment of all.
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