tracks – Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area. George Genereux Urban Regional Park.

Countdown to City Nature Challenge: Join the Effort to Map and Protect Saskatoon and Area’s Biodiversity

Are you in love with the incredible nature of Saskatoon and Area? Do you want to contribute to the mapping and protection of its biodiversity? If so, mark your calendars for April 28 to May 1, 2023, and get ready to participate in the Saskatoon and Area iNaturalist City Nature Challenge (CNC) YXE 2023! With just a few days left until the challenge begins, nature enthusiasts of all ages and backgrounds are invited to join this global citizen science initiative and make a difference for local wildlife.

Yellow-headed Blackbird (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) This is the brightly colored male. The female of the species will use the cattails, reeds or rushes standing above the surface of the water to weave a nest, and lay 2-5 eggs. — Yellow-headed Blackbird (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus)

All you need to participate in the City Nature Challenge is a smartphone and the free iNaturalist app. Simply download the app, create an account, and start documenting the flora and fauna you encounter in Saskatoon and Area during the challenge period. It’s a fun and easy way to contribute to a global effort of mapping urban biodiversity and raising awareness about the importance of nature in our cities.

Last year’s City Nature Challenge was a huge success, with 52,000 people from 445 cities in 47 countries participating, resulting in over 1.69 million observations of more than 50,000 species including those participants who documented 2,244 rare, endangered, and threatened species. These observations provide valuable data for scientists, researchers, and policymakers to better understand and protect urban biodiversity.

One of the highlights of the City Nature Challenge is the opportunity to learn about species at risk or noxious invasive species in your area. The iNaturalist app has a built-in feature that will notify you with an icon if the species you observe is at risk or invasive. This allows participants to contribute to the conservation efforts by providing important information about the distribution and abundance of these species in Saskatoon and Area.

As the City Nature Challenge takes place in the spring, it’s the perfect time to enjoy the best of what the season has to offer. From blooming wildflowers to singing birds, the natural world comes alive during this time of the year. Participants are encouraged to share their observations (photos and sound recordings) on social media using the hashtag #CityNatureChallenge, #CNCYXE and tagging Friends Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc @Friendsareas or #FriendsAreas, the organization hosting the event. Let nature be heard, and let’s celebrate the beauty and diversity of Saskatoon and Area’s natural heritage together.

So, be the reason nature believes in humanity and join the Saskatoon and Area iNaturalist City Nature Challenge from April 28 to May 1, 2023. With just a few days left, it’s time to get ready, download the iNaturalist app, and start exploring the local parks, trails, and natural areas to document the incredible biodiversity that surrounds us. Together, we can make a meaningful contribution to the conservation of Saskatoon and Area’s precious natural heritage. Learn more at FriendsAreas.ca and be part of the City Nature Challenge!

Planned events

Please let us know of your business, school, classroom, or group’s City nature challenge planned events also!

For directions as to how to drive to “George Genereux” Urban Regional Park
For directions on how to drive to Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
For more information:
Blairmore Sector Plan Report; planning for the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area, George Genereux Urban Regional Park and West Swale and areas around them inside of Saskatoon city limits
NEW P4G District Official Community Plan
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area is located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada north of Cedar Villa Road, within city limits, in the furthest south west area of the city. 52° 06′ 106° 45′
Addresses:
Part SE 23-36-6 – Afforestation Area – 241 Township Road 362-A
Part SE 23-36-6 – SW Off-Leash Recreation Area (Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area ) – 355 Township Road 362-A
S ½ 22-36-6 Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area (West of SW OLRA) – 467 Township Road 362-A
NE 21-36-6 “George Genereux” Afforestation Area – 133 Range Road 3063
Wikimapia Map: type in Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Google Maps South West Off Leash area location pin at parking lot
Web page: https://stbarbebaker.wordpress.com
Where is the Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area? with map
Where is the George Genereux Urban Regional Park (Afforestation Area)?with map
Pinterest richardstbarbeb
Blogger: FriendsAfforestation
Tumblr friendsafforestation.tumblr.com Facebook Group Page: Users of the George Genereux Urban Regional Park
Facebook: StBarbeBaker Afforestation Area
Facebook for the non profit Charity Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. FriendsAreas
Facebook group page : Users of the St Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Facebook: South West OLRA
Reddit: FriendsAfforestation
Twitter: St Barbe Baker Charity Twitter:FriendsAreas
Mix: friendsareas
YouTube
Please help protect / enhance your afforestation areas, please contact the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. (e-mail / e-transfers )Support the afforestation areas with your donation or membership ($20.00/year). Please donate by paypal or by using e-transfers Please and thank you! Your donation and membership is greatly appreciated. Members e-mail your contact information to be kept up to date!
Donations can be made through Paypal, Canada Helps, Contact Donate A Car Canada, SARCAN Drop & Go 106100594 for the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc.
United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration
Use the UN Decade’s Visual Identity
Make it your own
Spread the word about the UN Decade
Let’s Bring Back Forests
Let’s Green Our Cities
“Be like a tree in pursuit of your cause. Stand firm, grip hard, thrust upward. Bend to the winds of heaven..”
Richard St. Barbe Baker

Join the Saskatoon and Area City Nature Challenge 2023: A Celebration of Biodiversity and Cultural Heritage!

April 28 to May 1, 2023, Saskatoon and several other cities across the Prairie Provinces are gearing up to participate in the global City Nature Challenge (CNC). This exciting event encourages people of all ages and backgrounds to explore their local natural surroundings, observe and document biodiversity, and contribute valuable data to scientific research. But the Saskatoon and Area City Nature Challenge goes beyond just a celebration of nature – it also honors and respects the land’s rich cultural heritage, as the area is situated in Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis people.

As we embark on this thrilling adventure, it’s important to acknowledge and learn from the histories, languages, and cultures that shape our communities. The CNC slogan, ‘City Nature Challenge,’ has been translated into Michif, the language of the Métis people, as NATOONA (Search for… in Cree), PIMATSHIHK (Life… in Cree), and DANS LA VIL (In the City… in French). This translation reflects the interconnectedness of nature, language, and culture, and highlights the importance of embracing diversity and inclusivity in our exploration of the natural world.

During the Saskatoon and Area City Nature Challenge, you have the opportunity to observe, photograph, and make sound recordings of various species. But remember, it’s essential to respect wildlife and their habitats, and never disturb or harm them in any way. To enhance your experience, you can also explore the Michif Dictionary for correspondences of the biodiversity you encounter during the challenge. This will allow you to deepen your understanding of the local flora and fauna and appreciate the unique cultural connections to the land.

For those who are interested in learning more about Michif language and culture, you can also try the Michif Insect word search puzzle or the Michif word search, available as downloadable resources. These activities provide a fun and engaging way to expand your knowledge and appreciation of the Métis language and heritage while participating in the City Nature Challenge.

Participating in the Saskatoon and Area City Nature Challenge is a fantastic opportunity to connect with nature, learn about local biodiversity, and celebrate the rich cultural heritage of the area. Whether you’re a seasoned naturalist or new to the world of wildlife observation, this event offers something for everyone. So mark your calendars, gather your friends and family, and get ready to embark on a thrilling adventure of exploration and discovery. Let’s come together as friends, in harmony with the land, and make the Saskatoon and Area City Nature Challenge 2023 a memorable experience for all!

Discover the planned events, or create your own individual nature quest. In your business, group, school, or classroom challenge others to get involved!

Saskatoon and area will compete for the title of the most Biodiverse City. We need your help. The goals are to engage the public in the collection of biodiversity data, with three awards each year for the cities and areas that 1/ makes the most observations, 2/ find the most species, and 3/ engage the most people. We’re so excited to have this fun friendly competition with a chance to place Saskatoon and Area on the World Stage for the City Nature Challenge 2023! Learn more at FriendsAreas.ca April 28 to May 1, 2023

Volunteer Week!

April 24 – 30 is National Volunteer Week. Volunteer for the

City Nature Challenge – City Nature Challenge

Home

City Nature Challenge Saskatoon and Area 2022

https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2022-saskatoon-sk

In love with Saskatoon and Area’s incredible nature? You can help observe on iNat & protect it by joining this year’s #CityNatureChallenge, April 29–May 2! All you need to join is a smartphone and the free @inaturalist app. Learn more at FriendsAreas.ca Explore back yards, the afforestation areas, along the boulevards of our city streets, in the nooks and crannys of fences and trees. Participating is easy: just make observations of wild plants, animals, and fungi, anywhere in the Saskatoon and Area with the free @inaturalist app April 29 – May 2, and they’ll automatically be added to this project.

The CNC was organized by citizen science staff at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (Lila Higgins) and California Academy of Sciences (Alison Young). The City Nature Challenge has become a global effort for people to find and document plants and wildlife in cities across the globe in support of world conservation efforts. It’s a fun citizen science event with a challenge where cities are in a contest against each other to see who can make the most observations of nature, who can find the most species, and who can engage the most people.

Being involved is super easy!

connect with nature- fungi, insects, Plants and Wildlife

From the CNC FAQ page; Take photos, or sound recordings of “any observations of WILD plants, animals, fungi, seaweed, bacteria, lichen, etc. you find in and around your city! Observations of living or dead organisms, or evidence of those organisms, like shells, seeds, tracks, scat, pinecones, feathers, etc., are fine. Remember to make sure you’re taking good photos of the organisms!”

Take a Picture

Take a picture of what you discover in nature. The iNaturalist app records the GPS location of the critter or plant – and you can set it to obscured or leave it as publicly known. (Don’t change location to private or it won’t be part of the City Nature Challenge)

Share!

Upload, share, save your observations through iNaturalist or Ebird or Observation.org

Duties

Why participate in the City Nature Challenge?

There is nature all around us, even in our cities! As the urban footprint and the human monoculture keeps expanding, nature is often overlooked in our cities, which has become a safe haven for many wild animals who no longer have a wild habitat. You cannot protect what you don’t know, and all of us – citizen scientists, scientists, land managers, and the community – come together in Twihamwe “working together as one” to find and document the nature in our area. The Saskatchewan Motto strengthens the volunteer spirit of the City Nature Challenge’ Multis e Gentibus Vires (Latin) (“From Many Peoples Strength!”) By participating in the City Nature Challenge, you can learn more about your local nature, and at the same time you can also make your city a better place – for you and nature!

For the COVID-19 pandemic, some modifications were implemented into the City Nature Challenge 2020 and 2021 to help keep both organizers and participants safe. It is way more important to focus on collaboration rather than competition. And we want to know about and embrace the healing power of nature and encourage the sharing of unique stories, species, habitat ranges found during the CNC. Look inside your own homes, in your own yard, in your local bus stop, along your boulevard or local park. Keep safe, follow all health guidelines for COVID, follow all health guidelines for nature as well! This year’s City Nature Challenge is a hybrid between collaboration and competition.

Create your own iNaturalist account

Visit iNaturalist.org
Download the app from the AppStore or Google Play
Sign In
Start sharing your observations
Check back later to see the conversation about your observation!

Qualifications

iNaturalist is an free observation platform that uses both computer recognition vision technology alongside crowd sourced corroboration that acts as a place for people to record biodiversity observations, interact with other enthusiasts, and learn about organisms. Observations from iNaturalist also enrich biodiversity science within open science projects such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and the Encyclopedia of Life (EOL). Scientists (and anyone) can freely access and use these data to address their research questions. iNaturalist is as easy to use as 1-2-3!

Find It

Snap It

Share It

This guide, along with YouTube Videos, and planned Virtual events for volunteers who wish to take part will walk you through recommendations for the best ways to use iNaturalist with students in formal or informal settings so they learn from the experience and contribute high-quality observations to the iNaturalist community.

What kinds of observations of nature should I make during the CNC?

Any observations of WILD plants, animals, fungi, seaweed, bacteria, lichen, etc. you find in and around your city! Remember to check under the leaves of your cultivated plants. Observations of living or dead organisms, or evidence of those organisms, like shells, tracks, scat, feathers, etc., are fine. Remember to make sure you’re taking good photos of the organisms!

Celebrate 50 years! Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area and George Genereux Urban Regional park were planted to trees in 1972, 50 years ago. Come out and say Happy Birthday!

City Nature Challenge CNCYXE Saskatoon area versus YQRCNC Regina and area in a mini SK challenge

Regina YQRCNC vs Saskatoon CNCYXE SK mini Challenge for the City Nature Challenge — City Nature Challenge CNCYXE Saskatoon area versus YQRCNC Regina and area in a mini SK challenge

YouTube

Please help protect / enhance your afforestation areas, please contact the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. (e-mail / e-transfers )Support the afforestation areas with your donation or membership ($20.00/year). Please donate by paypal or by using e-transfers Please and thank you! Your donation and membership is greatly appreciated. Members e-mail your contact information to be kept up to date!

Donations can be made through Paypal, Canada Helps, Contact Donate A Car Canada, SARCAN Drop & Go 106100594 for the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc.

United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

Use the UN Decade’s Visual Identity
Make it your own
Spread the word about the UN Decade
Let’s Bring Back Forests
Let’s Green Our Cities

“Be like a tree in pursuit of your cause. Stand firm, grip hard, thrust upward. Bend to the winds of heaven..”
Richard St. Barbe Baker

iNaturalist Identification For Beginners

iNaturalist Identification For Beginners
Online event
Wednesday, March 23, 2022 at 7:00 PM CST

Learning how to make identifications on iNaturalist. From April 29-May 2 we hope many people around Saskatoon and Area will make observations of nature by downloading the free iNaturalist app to their smart phone. It’s as easy as 1-2-3

From May 3 to May 8 is the identification phase. If you would like some hints and tips to help out, here is an online webinar to make identification easier!

We need your help!

May 9 is when the City Nature Challenge winners from around the World will be announced.

YouTube

Donations can be made through Paypal, Canada Helps, Contact Donate A Car Canada, SARCAN Drop & Go 106100594 for the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc.

United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

Use the UN Decade’s Visual Identity
Make it your own
Spread the word about the UN Decade
Let’s Bring Back Forests
Let’s Green Our Cities

“Be like a tree in pursuit of your cause. Stand firm, grip hard, thrust upward. Bend to the winds of heaven..”
Richard St. Barbe Baker

iNaturalist

Today is a great day to open and sign into iNaturalist to your computer, and explore the world, Saskatchewan or Saskatoon for the exciting plants and animals around us.

Then on your smart phone download iNaturalist app, and sign in.

In the winter time, one can still take pictures of animals and birds. Discover fresh tracks and scat on the snow. Find plants, feathers, lichen on trees to take pictures of through the iNaturalist app.

There are YouTube tutorials posted, and informational iNaturalist pdfs online to get you started. There are getting started and teacher’s guides. You get out of it what you put into it.

Let us know if you have any questions or would like to go out to the afforestation areas for a tour!

Also, the Friends still has a prize worth $50 retail to anyone who finds the Linden tree in the west side of Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area! Send us the GPS or let us know where you found it. It is a treasure hunt!

American Beaver, Porcupine, Red-winged Blackbird, Fawn, Mallard Ducks, Waxwing, Rabbit, Deer Chappell Marsh. West Swale Wetlands. Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area. Saskatoon, SK, CA

YouTube

Donations can be made through Paypal, Canada Helps, Contact Donate A Car Canada, SARCAN Drop & Go 106100594 for the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc.

United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

Use the UN Decade’s Visual Identity
Make it your own
Spread the word about the UN Decade
Let’s Bring Back Forests
Let’s Green Our Cities

“Be like a tree in pursuit of your cause. Stand firm, grip hard, thrust upward. Bend to the winds of heaven..”
Richard St. Barbe Baker

“Every charitable act is a stepping stone toward heaven.”
Henry Ward Beecher

World Wildlife Day

World Wildlife Day is March 3! What an opportunity!

What are you most interested in today? Maybe birds? More than one kind of bird, and identifying them! That would be fantastic to be on a bird scavenger hunt. So instead of staying at home with your “Where’s Waldo?” puzzles, come into the forest, and find birds, bird nests, and bird tracks.

Look in the bushy areas, and the swampy areas. Come out to the woods and immerse yourself in the sights, smells, and sounds of nature, and take away an experience that will stay with you for a lifetime of memories!

Download the winter bird checklist pamphlet and see how many of the birds in the listing you can see in the forest, and at the bird feeders! That is the scavenger hunt for today. If you email your Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area Bird sighting list to us or let us know your e-Bird user name, or iNaturalist user name for your afforestation area sightings, and you can be entered and be eligible for the prize draw taking place at the end of the month!

World Wildlife Day celebrates more than birds. Let us know the squirrels, or other animals, scat, footprints or animal signs you may see in the afforestation areas via email to be entered and be eligible for the prize draw taking place at the end of the month! Good Luck!

Richard St. Barbe Baker was the first person to be honoured with a lifetime membership in the World Wildlife Federation. Baker created and protected so many habitats worldwide in his tree planting endeavours.

“A simple act of kindness and compassion towards a single animal may not mean anything to all creatures, but will mean everything to one.”
― Paul Oxton

YouTubePlaylist
Pinterest richardstbarbeb
Blogger: FriendsAfforestation
Tumblr friendsafforestation.tumblr.com
Facebook Group Page: Users of the George Genereux Urban Regional Park
Facebook: StBarbeBaker Afforestation Area
Facebook for the non profit Charity Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. FriendsAreas
Facebook group page : Users of the St Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Facebook: South West OLRA
Reddit: FriendsAfforestation
Twitter: St Barbe Baker Charity Twitter:FriendsAreas
Mix: friendsareas
Please help protect / enhance your afforestation areas, please contact the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc. (e-mail / e-transfers )Support the afforestation areas with your donation or membership ($20.00/year). Please donate by paypal using the e-mail friendsafforestation AT gmail.com, or by using e-transfers Please and thank you! Your donation and membership is greatly appreciated. Members e-mail your contact information to be kept up to date! Canada Helps

United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

Use the UN Decade’s Visual Identity
Make it your own
Spread the word about the UN Decade
Let’s Bring Back Forests
Let’s Green Our Cities

“To be standing together in a frosty field, looking up into the sky, marvelling at birds and revelling in the natural world around us, was a simple miracle. And I wondered why we were so rarely able to appreciate it.”
Lynn Thomson

“No matter how few possessions you own or how little money you have, loving wildlife and nature will make you rich beyond measure.”
― Paul Oxton

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Being involved is super easy!

connect with nature- fungi, insects, Plants and Wildlife

Take a Picture

Share!

Why participate in the City Nature Challenge?

Create your own iNaturalist account

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