How will we make and record observations on the day?

Participants are asked to use iNaturalist (https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/) to record and upload their data to the online repository. There are links to videos and tips and trick on how to use it at the bottom of this page.

iNaturalist is a global digital repository of biodiversity data and automatically inputs uploads into the national Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) database. You can read more about ALA here: https://www.ala.org.au/

The Kaleen BioBlitz will have a designated ‘project’ in iNaturalist so, when you take an image or make a recording, you can automatically link it to our specific event. This will assist with our post BioBlitz data analysis and compilation of results

iNaturalist may seem rather technical at first but it is very easy to use. Please sign-up to, download, and familiarise yourself with iNaturalist before the day of the BioBlitz. Why not play around with it in your own backyards in the lead up to the event. This will help provide even more information about biodiversity in Kaleen.

How to identify what you find?

iNaturalist assists participants identify what they have found and, where immediate identification is not possible, allows global participants to assist with identification.

However, before the event (and even during) you could familiarise yourself with some of the key species we might find. To do this, you can use resources such as:

However, on the day, there is no need to worry if you don’t know what it is you have found! We have a three-pronged approach to identification:

  1. You can use iNaturalist and the links to other information sources and apps on this website
  2. In our designated sessions, you can ask our volunteers for help
  3. In the weeks following the BioBlitz, we will consult with scientific experts to review the data gathered in our project to identify any records still lacking identification.

How to use iNaturalist

To prepare everyone to use iNaturalist for uploading and identifying images there are some excellent, short videos available on the iNaturalist website https://www.inaturalist.org/pages/video+tutorials.

If you do not have access to wifi during your BioBlitz session, or you are using a camera separate to a device, you can upload the images when you return home via the device or via a computer.

We have embedded some of the key tutorials below: