Jarrahmond Landcare: Putting Local Nature
on the Map: 2,106 species
At each Jarrahmond Landcare Meeting, member Vik Dunis provides a report updating the group on how the project is travelling and interesting and rare observations are discussed. A recent report included the fact that their citizen science project had passed the milestones of 10,000 observations with over 2,000 species identified within the Jarrahmond Landcare nature study area (Lacanastar), and the effort is continuing. Another item of interest presented at the same meeting was a short history of the international iNaturalist platform:
The results are impressive, with 11,136 observations covering 2,106 species. The project is building a valuable record of local biodiversity while encouraging people to look more closely at the natural environment around them.
Jarrahmond Landcare is showing what can be achieved when a community takes an active interest in its local environment. A community-driven biodiversity mapping project using the iNaturalist platform to record plants, animals, fungi and other species across the landscape.
Local knowledge meets citizen science
A key part of the project is the involvement of local residents, including the project’s “iNat Legends”
— people regularly getting out into the landscape, photographing species and adding their
observations.
The plant component alone has recorded 2,952 observations of 593 species, contributed by
69 observers.
The project is also documenting local plants such as wattles and elderberries and recording
observations through the seasons. This helps build knowledge of when species flower, fruit and
seed, providing valuable information for local ecology, restoration and revegetation.
Recent observations include Sunshine Wattle, Myrtle Wattle, Early Wattle,
Golden Wattle and Long-leaf Wattle, along with local elderberry and rainforest species.
A great example of community Landcare
Jarrahmond Landcare’s work demonstrates how community enthusiasm,
citizen science and local knowledge can come together to better understand and
care for the environment.
Thousands of observations and more than 2,000 species are helping create an increasingly
detailed picture of Jarrahmond’s remarkable biodiversity — one photograph at a time.
The project is about more than collecting data. It is about building knowledge, connecting
people with their landscape and giving the community the tools to understand and care
for the places they live in.
Congratulations to Jarrahmond Landcare and all the local volunteers contributing to this fantastic project — a wonderful example of local people discovering, documenting and protecting their natural environment.
