37 days to go - Time to highlight Winnipeg Center South observations

Those of you who have already looked at the survey area map on the project page may have noticed a certain blocky quality to the boundaries. Each square represents a single grid square in the Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinate system. A single grid square is big enough to give observers variety but small enough to feel neighbourly. There are 36 squares making up our survey area - so lets see if I can manage to introduce you all to all of them before the event begins.

Our first grid square is Winnipeg Center South 14PA32. The square stretches from Point Douglas in the north to Bishop Grandin in the south; from just inside Lagimodière on the east to the old West End and River Heights on the west; all entirely within the urban area of Winnipeg. The Red River meanders south to north through the center of the square, meeting the Assiniboine River arriving from the west at the Forks. The Seine River meanders north along the eastern section until it meets the Red near its northern boundary. These three watercourses provide natural highways for many organisms not usually found on city streets. Public parks in this area including St. Vital Park, Crescent Drive Park, Whittier Park and Lagimodière-Gaboury. Here you will find many organisms large and small that prefer wooded surroundings and don't mind the nearby city activity.

As of today, over ten thousand observations have been located within this grid square thanks to the efforts of @seraphinpoudrier , @mamestraconfigurata and 649 others. More than 1,289 species have been identified, the majority (480 species) are insects, with plants (476 species) a close second. In March and April, migration is in full swing as many birds return from warmer latitudes on their way to their nesting grounds. Trees and shrubs are leafing out while forest floor plants rush into bloom before the tree canopy fills in. Butterflies that over-wintered as adults become active and ant colonies resume their patrols.

Observing for iNaturalist in an urban environment requires an extra step. iNaturalist is happy to take all our observations but if the organism observed is not wild it needs to be marked as captive/cultivated. This helps those who are using the data for their research sort out those observations that are of organisms that made their own way to the location from those which were put there by humans.

Publicado el marzo 24, 2021 03:23 MAÑANA por marykrieger marykrieger

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