I was informed yesterday that Mary Kennedy, an enthusiastic naturalist and tireless promoter of iNaturalist in Nova Scotia, passed away on July 30, 2025, at the age of 69. Mary was an aquatic biologist and data manager during her career at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, and after retirement…

Thank you for sharing her story

I answered a lot of Mary’s questions via iNat Support over the years. Her enthusiasam and passion for nature and iNat were always inspiring.

In addition to iNaturalist, Mary was certainly a very keen contributor to the Ocean Biogeographical information System (OBIS). Just now looking at OBIS, I see 126 of 252 datasets with Mary’s name as the contact. A whirling dervish to say the least, almost impossible to keep up.

I will miss terribly Mary’s incredible enthusiasm, humour, and warmth, for talking about all manner of species matters, iNat, WoRMS, OBIS, and also about people in general. Truly inspirational.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him) said: “Scholars remain as long as the world endures. Though their bodies perish, their legacy endures in the hearts of many.”

In Memoriam: Mary Kennedy (@mkkennedy)

General

song_dog August 15, 2025, 5:30pm 4

Wow, while using inat, she made over 48,000 observations and 3,000 species - that’s incredible!

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In Memoriam: Mary Kennedy (@mkkennedy)

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