Glad to share that iNaturalist has earned some media coverage in my neck of the woods - Northwestern Ontario, Canada. I just found this story on the website of the radio station (CKDR) in Dryden, Ontario:
Quoting: “In addition to helping scientists and organizations like NCC, the iNaturalist app helps Canadians learn more about the different plants, animals, and insects in their backyard and throughout their neighbourhood.”
Forest fire smoke notwithstanding, I will be out on the trail!
We are facing one of the worst fire seasons on record here. Two of the seven active fires along the Manitoba/Ontario border are now over 150,000 hectares (that’s 370,000 acres for non-metric users) and have been burning for about two months. This website will give readers a sense of how severe the smoke is. Under normal circumstances, Northwestern Ontario enjoys very good air quality. Not this summer.
Along the Rainy River, we’ve been fortunate to get a little precip in the last three days. However, total rain for July 2021 is still only 29.6mm (1.16"). Our 30-year average for July is 96.7mm (3.81"). Those who know say these are 50-year drought conditions, and I understand hay yields are about 30-40% of normal in the District. I suspect the annual winter finch forecast will show cone crops in the boreal forest have failed this year.