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Sun and clouds mixed. High 79F. Winds WNW at 10 to 15 mph..

Clear skies. Low 49F. Winds light and variable.

Blue Curls (Trichostema dichotomum), a favorite wildflower of the author, identified by iNaturalist

Blue Curls (Trichostema dichotomum), a favorite wildflower of the author, identified by iNaturalist

October is a glorious time to stroll amongst the wildflowers, those hearty blossoming plants some people call weeds. I’ve always appreciated the golds of goldenrod and the purples of American Beautyberries. I also love haircap mosses, pixie cup lichens, late boneset, blue curls, false foxgloves, blue mistflower, panicled tick trefoil, spotted horsemint, perennial wollie bean, and hay-scented ferns. 

I have a confession: I didn’t just pull all those names out of my head. I pulled them off my iNaturalist profile where my photographs of my observations are identified and stored. 

If you are unfamiliar with iNaturalist, you are in for a treat. For those of you who are regular users, I offer my apologies for giving away the secret to your impressively vast knowledge of local species.

There are many handy apps out there for identifying living things. I’ve tried a heap, and iNaturalist is hands-down my favorite. The iNaturalist app not only helps me identify what I see, but it timestamps and geotags my observations, making them visible to other users who can agree with the identifications suggested by the app or offer alternatives. After several concurring identities, a sweet green “Research Grade” label appears and the pictures become part of a usable database.

iNaturalist also offers users access to projects ranging from those set up by school teachers to state organizations to specialties including amphibians, poisonous fungi, and road kill. The day I downloaded my free iNaturalist app, I joined “Biodiversity of Alabama,” a project of the Alabama Museum of Natural History with the aim of recording organisms found throughout Alabama. All my qualifying observations are automatically added to this collection.

This brings us to the project of the day: The Marble Bowl. This project, so named for Alabama’s state rock, is the brainchild of Wes Anderson, an Alabama Extension forestry, wildlife, and natural resources specialist. 

The Marble Bowl takes advantage of a 128-year-long football rivalry, pitting Auburn fans against Alabama fans for contributions. This competition began in September and runs through the weekend of the Iron Bowl.

I have another confession: I don’t much care about football, but a contest to record and map Alabama’s biodiversity? Count me in!

This is not the first competition I’ve been in of this sort. When we were little, my brother Robert and I used to pack our Peterson Field Guides, magnifying glasses, Radio Shack walkie-talkies, and notebooks and set out on grand expeditions to identify living things in our neighborhood. Later, we’d compare lists. Robert always won; he was just better at finding stuff. Still, I enjoyed making my catalogs. Even though nobody ever used my notes, I felt like I was doing something important. 

Today, members of the general public freely collaborate with the scientific community in a union called Citizen Science. iNaturalist is but one of many popular Citizen Science projects. Others include the Great Backyard Bird Count, during which participants count birds for just a few days per year (for 2023 it’s February 17-20); Journey North which focuses on migrating species; and Roots and Shoots, a community action project developed by Jane Goodall. While some Citizen Science projects are geared toward educators, most are accessible to anyone willing to participate. 

Citizen Science needs you. While it’s true that humans benefit from understanding the natural world around us, it’s also true that the scientific community needs our voices. Science depends on a truly diversified playing field, and everyone’s contributions are valuable.

This morning, I went outside with my older granddaughter where she found an unusual fern in the yard. I handed her my phone and showed her how to take a picture through iNaturalist. The app identified it as a “Soft Fern.” At first glance she didn’t accept this suggestion. “It’s not the same shade of green,” she said. But as she looked further, she saw the rounded leaves, the spores, the location of the suggested plant, and decided to accept that ID. 

“Will real scientists use my picture?” she asked.

“Absolutely,” I said, and she smiled a smile as big as a mile.

If you would like to join the Marble Bowl, download the iNaturalist app and set up an account. From your phone or computer search for “Marble Bowl 2022 – Auburn University” or “Marble Bowl 2022 – University of Alabama” and join according to your allegiance. Should you have any trouble, find someone under the age of 30 to help you. Other Citizen Science projects are easily discoverable by searching the internet. 

Have fun and may everybody win.

Mary Dansak is a writer and a retired science education specialist living in Auburn, AL. She can be reached at maryfdansak@gmail.com.

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