Biodiversity Observation Tracking on Lands Stewarded by the Catholic Church (and other Catholic Organizations) using iNaturalist
Have you ever wondered, “How many species are on lands stewarded by the Catholic Church?”
Well, you can help us find out, using iNaturalist!
iNaturalist is “an online social network of people sharing biodiversity information to help each other learn about nature.” Anyone can use iNaturalist. Simply download the iNaturalist application on your phone, create an account, login, and start taking photos of plants and animals! Once you upload a photo, members of the community can help you identify the species name of the organism you saw. You can also visit iNaturalist.org and create an account that way, as well as follow others and explore projects. Your observations on lands stewarded by the Catholic Church and her members help us understand and conserve biodiversity!
For each Saint Kateri Habitat stewarded by a Catholic organization, the Saint Kateri Conservation Center has created a project based on the boundary of these lands. We are also adding other Catholic Church stewarded lands, as well as those lands shepherded by other Catholic organizations, like retreat centers! When a person takes an iNaturalist observation on these lands, it will automatically show up in the project. Click the button on the right to view the different Habitats with iNaturalist observations!
Not collecting on Church affiliated property? No problem! You can still be a part of this effort to catalog biodiversity, even in your own yard. When you sign up for iNaturalist, you can search for projects. Simply search for the Saint Kateri Catholic Bioblitz 2020-2021 and click Join! If you need help, don’t hesitate to contact us at saintkatericenter@gmail.com!
Special thanks to Ken Carman, iNaturalist guru and volunteer!
Note: We recognize as an organization that working hand in hand with indigenous peoples is critical to our mission and to caring for our common home. All church properties are traditional homelands of First Nations people and we acknowledge this fact in all that we do. If you wish to discuss learning more about the indigenous people who lived in your area, or if you are interested in preserving your property or transfering it back to indigenous peoples, email us at kateri.org.