Maricopa County Parks Eco-Blitz

Join us from January-December 2021 documenting all the species you see while visiting the county parks. Your participation will help the park staff better understand the biodiversity that occurs at our open space natural area parks.
What you need: a smartphone with a camera and the I-Naturalist app., an annual pass to the parks will also be helpful.
How to document species; while visiting the county parks take pictures of a any plant or wildlife species that you see. Try to get your pictures in focus pictures so that the I-naturalist experts can identify the species. To become a member of the Maricopa Parks ECO-Blitz project just select JOIN on top right corner of the projects home page.
Tips and tricks:
Plants: take a picture of the flowers, and other pictures of the leaf arrangement or even of the flowers and leaves. Use the focus on your camera (often taping where you want your phone camera to focus on)
Wildlife: I start taking pictures at a distance, zoom in and take a picture, then move in a bit closer to take another picture and it often takes s three steps in towards the lizards before I capture a good image. However, if your shadow covers the species, they will scurry off for fear of predation. Many animals have characteristic features that help identify them, you will learn many of these if you attempt to identify the species in the local botanical and wildlife books.
Rules:
Please Do NOT handle, touch, or pick up any wildlife species, or plants.
Do not remove flowers for identification, use your camera as your tool.
Stay on trails and trail edges.
Be aware of your surroundings for other trail users and for rattlesnakes or other venomous wildlife.
Stay safe, do not risk your safety to get a picture of an animal that can cause harm or injury if they feel threatened.
You will be responsible for entry fees into the parks. So an annual pass works best.

Publicado el 29 de octubre de 2020 por juanitajn5