One of the joys of this past year has been documenting interesting flora and fauna that I’ve found in my back yard and in my neighborhood.

Thanks to iNaturalist, a free app that’s a joint initiative of the California Academy of Sciences and the National Geographic Society, figuring out what you’ve discovered has never been easier. You upload a photo you’ve taken into iNaturalist, and it will give you suggestions for what you’ve seen. Post your best guess, and it’ll be confirmed or disputed by fellow naturalists.

“Every observation can contribute to biodiversity science, from the rarest butterfly to the most common backyard weed. We share your findings with scientific data repositories like the Global Biodiversity Information Facility to help scientists find and use your data. All you have to do is observe,” according to the iNaturalist website.

I get a real thrill when my upload is approved as research grade. I think you will, too! This weekend, April 30 through May 3, join a fun competition to see which city can document the most plant and animal species during a four-day worldwide City Nature Challenge. Here’s how to play: https://tpwd.texas.gov/naturechallenge

More than 150 cities worldwide are anticipated to participate in the 2021 event. Participating Texas cities include Abilene | Amarillo | Austin | College Station/Brazos Valley | Corpus Christi | Dallas-Forth Worth | El Paso | Houston-Galveston | Lower Rio Grande Valley | Lubbock | Port Aransas/Mustang Island | San Antonio | Waco | Wichita Falls, but you do not have to live in one of these cities to participate. To learn more about the City Nature Challenge 2021, click here: https://citynaturechallenge.org/.

Learning how to be present in the moment and in your surroundings has been one of the best gifts of the pandemic. Document those little moments of joy and help scientists while you’re at it. Make Earth Day every day!

Denise Barkis Richter, Ph.D., author of “San Antonio’s Passport to Fun,” has been blogging about San Antonio since June of 2010. Follow her at facebook.com/SanAntonioTourist so that you’ll never miss a post. Her love affair with the Alamo City began at Hemisfair in 1968. She moved to San Antonio in 1979 as an 18-year-old college student, and San Antonio has been her home ever since. Denise completed certification to become a professional tour guide in 2019. Please contact her at sanantoniotourist at gmail dot com if you’d like for her to curate a fabulous San Antonio experience for you!