Explore nature and share your observations with the world during the 2024 City Nature Challenge

During the 2024 City Nature Challenge - happening April 26 through 29, 2024 - explore nature and share your observations with the world so we can continue to learn about and protect our natural environment. Using the iNaturalist app, help our region record as many wild plants and animals as possible on land, in the air, and in our marine environments. Explore on your own or join others in Port Moody at events offered by the City and our local stewardship partners. All activities are free.

The City Nature Challenge (CNC) is an international event, motivating people around the world to find and document wildlife in their own cities. It's an annual four-day global bioblitz at the end of April, where cities are in a collaboration-meets-friendly-competition to see what can be accomplished when we all work toward a common goal. Port Moody is participating as part of the Metro Vancouver region. Visit the City Nature Challenge 2024: Metro Vancouver Region project page at iNaturalist.org to learn more.

All you need to do is:

• download the iNaturalist app to your iPhone or Android phone or your home computer;
• join the "City Nature Challenge 2024: Metro Vancouver Regional District (MVRD)" group under the "Projects" tab in the iNaturalist app;
• make an observation using photos or sound recordings from April 26 to April 29, 2024; and
• upload your observations directly to iNaturalist through your phone, or from your computer, through May 4, 2024.

New to iNaturalist? Visit inaturalist.org/pages/getting+started for some great tips on how to get started and how to make and upload observations.

Help us to explore and share the incredible biodiversity of our area by observing nature all around us. Join us at one or all of the following five events happening in Port Moody:

1. City Nature Challenge - Shorebirds & Songbirds of the Shoreline Trail

When: Saturday, April 27, 2024 - 8am to 9am (1 hour)
Where: Meet at PCT Stage in Rocky Point Park(2800 Murray Street) to begin this walk along the Shoreline Trail
What: Learn about shorebirds and songbirds along the Shoreline Trail. Using the iNaturalist app to identify plant and animal species along the way, join Burke Mountain Naturalists for an informative stroll along the Shoreline Trail. Please dress for the weather with appropriate footwear for dirt and gravel trails. This walk will proceed as scheduled rain or shine. You can download the iNaturalist app for iPhone or Android in advance of this event.
Registration Required: Yes (all ages) - visit portmoody.ca/signmeup and select "Educational Programs" under "Dept. of Environment and Parks"

2. City Nature Challenge - Fish & Friends of Noons Creek

When: Saturday, April 27, 2024 - 9am to 11am (2 hours)
Where: Noons Creek Hatchery (340 Ioco Road - follow the trail behind the ice rink)
What: Discover wildlife around Noons Creek and the role they play in stream health. After a guided tour of this riparian area, use the iNaturalist app to identify insects and aquatic invertebrates, birds, fish, and plants around Noons Creek Hatchery. Use microscopes to get a close-up view of the critters in Noons Creek. You can download the iNaturalist app for iPhone or Android in advance of this event.
Registration Required: Yes (all ages; youth/children-focused) - visit portmoody.ca/signmeup and select "Educational Programs" under "Dept. of Environment and Parks"

3. City Nature Challenge - Heron Walk

When: Saturday, April 27, 2024 - 11am to 1pm (2 hrs)
Where: Meet at the Port Moody Recreation Complex (300 Ioco Road) tennis courts to begin this walk along the Shoreline Trail
What: Come learn about Port Moody's resident Great Blue Heron colony with Burke Mountain Naturalists and help document the species around the colony using the iNaturalist app. Please dress for the weather with appropriate footwear for dirt and gravel trails. This walk will proceed as scheduled rain or shine. You can download the iNaturalist app for iPhone or Android in advance of this event.
Registration Required: Yes (all ages) - visit portmoody.ca/signmeup and select "Educational Programs" under "Dept. of Environment and Parks"

4. City Nature Challenge - Tri-Cities Bear Aware

When: Sunday, April 28, 2024 - 10am to 12pm (2 hrs)|
Where: Bert Flinn Park (entrance at Heritage Mountain Boulevard at David Avenue)
What: Stop by the Tri-Cities Bear Aware booth at Bert Flinn Park. Learn all about bears and coexisting with wildlife. Document the natural food sources of bears around the park using an app called iNaturalist. This walk will proceed as scheduled rain or shine. You can download the iNaturalist app for iPhone or Android in advance of this event.
Registration Required: No

5. City Nature Challenge - Fish & Friends of Mossom Creek

When: Sunday, April 28, 2024 - 1:30pm to 3pm (1.5 hours)
Where: Mossom Creek Hatchery (Mossom Creek Drive off Ioco Road - head up the gravel drive for one kilometre)
What: Tour the beautiful and fully-accessible Mossom Creek Hatchery, nestled in the forest and recently gold-certified by the Rick Hansen Accessibility Foundation. Identify watershed plants and animals with the iNaturalist app and contribute to a global data base. Please dress for the weather, as this tour will proceed as scheduled rain or shine. Be sure to download the iNaturalist app for iPhone or Android in advance.
Registration Required: Yes (all ages) - visit portmoody.ca/signmeup and select "Educational Programs" under "Dept. of Environment and Parks"

For questions about how to register, please email [email protected] or call 604-469-4556. If you have questions about the events listed above or the City Nature Challenge, please email [email protected] or call 604-469-4574.

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