Sasquatch & Trophies

The primary purpose of the City Nature Challenge: Bonner County (CNCBC) is to document the incredible biodiversity in the area, while spotlighting the need to identify, preserve and restore critical habitat for threatened species.

A secondary purpose is to highlight the importance of the native plants that support the food web for local species, including pollinators. One thing that you can easily do is a bioblitz on your own property (with either iNaturalist or Seek). Find out what’s there! And, should you want to learn how to create and enhance natural areas around your home, there are lots of resources to help, like: “The Woods in Your Backyard” (https://www.amazon.com/Woods-Your-Backyard-Learning-Enhance/dp/1933395109), and “Bringing Nature Home” (https://www.amazon.com/Bringing-Nature-Home-Wildlife-Expanded/dp/0881929921).

If you haven’t already created a free iNaturalist account so that you can participate in the CNCBC, go here: https://www.inaturalist.org/signup.

To encourage people to be a little more ambitious and explore the biodiversity richness throughout the county, the Pend Oreille Chapter of the Idaho Master Naturalists is going to:
1) Make a life size silhouette of a Sasquatch, and hide it in 4 different places around the county, on each of the 4 days of the Challenge. Her name is Sassy. (A photo of Sassy will be posted here once it’s completed so you’ll know what to look for.)
2) Make 4 small “CNCBC 2021” Sasquatch trophies to be given to the first person to find Sassy -and- make 20 observations of other species on each day of the competition (photos of the trophies will be posted next Sunday). A new location clue will be posted on this Facebook Page, and on the iNaturalist Project Page, the evening before to give you a general idea of where to look the next day.
3) Make a taller “CNCBC Champ 2021” Sasquatch trophy to be awarded to the person who makes the most unique species observations over the four-day period (photo of the trophy will be posted next Sunday).

*A special thank you goes out to Chad Butherus of Hard Art Studios, NE of Rathdrum for the trophies noted in items 2 and 3 above (here’s a link to his Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/hardartstudios/).

To make things even more interesting, in addition to the “competition” between all the worldwide CNCs, a friendly regional competition will take place between Boise, Bonner County, and Red Lodge, MT (Carbon County).

Here are the links to the respective Project pages:

• Bonner County: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2021-bonner-county-id
• Boise: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2021-boise-area
• Red Lodge: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2021-red-lodge-area

The organizers in Red Lodge are making a unique “Northern Rocky Mountain Challenge” (NRMC) trophy for the winner of our mini-competition (photo of the trophy coming soon). For the trophy, each Challenge has a magnetic mascot: Peregrine Falcon for Boise, Sasquatch for Bonner County, and Moose for Red Lodge (removable magnets were chosen in the event that other area/regional Challenges are formed, and want to compete in the future). The NRMC trophy will be awarded to the Challenge that has the most participants per capita per project. (Participants must have an iNaturalist account, so that excludes children under the age of 13. Younger children can participate using a group account (i.e., with a class using a teacher’s account), or by helping someone with an iNaturalist account by finding things on their own using the Seek app.)

On May 10, 2021, the results will be announced.
1) There will be a Facebook Live “City Nature Challenge Awards Ceremony” at 4:00 PM (https://www.facebook.com/events/782272925738524) to announce the local competition winners, and the mini-competition regional winner. If Bonner County wins the regional competition, Mike Bauer of the East Bonner County Library District will accept the NRMC trophy, and it will be kept and displayed at the library, but will be rotated to different locations around the county.
2) The Sasquatch trophies winners will be announced, and the trophies can be picked up at the library.
3) Sassy will be at the library, so come by and have your picture taken with her!
4) After the CNCBC is over, Sassy will be primarily kept at the WaterLife Discovery Center in Sagle, but will be rotated around the county to keep interest high for future bioblitzes.

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Listen to Mike Bauer’s KRFY CNCBC interview here:
http://krfymedia.keokee.com/CommunityConversations-20210406-LibraryMikeBauer.mp3

Check out Kristen Gnojewski’s excellent “The City Nature Challenge and iNaturalist Basics” webinar recording here:
https://zoom.us/rec/share/ylbnIZKzvBfCajvSa-44QNouu5JIIzIJyH2x5t2pWz8unetIBE3LwkLZZre8dc4w.8Tjt8VKOr6LRYs3w

The Kinnikinnick Native Plant Society is having a Zoom presentation titled “City Nature Challenge 2021: Bonner County” on Saturday, April 24, 2021 at 10:00 AM Pacific Time.
Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIoceqqrTIvGNNOgMx-grNiYheBZn2KhA3J.

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For more information about the CBCBC, check out the About section of this Facebook Page, and/or go to the Bonner County iNaturalist Project Page and explore the Journal entries:
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2021-bonner-county-id.

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Please make sure to go to the CBCBC Event Page, and click if you’re Interested or Going, and Invite your Facebook Friends to participate:
https://www.facebook.com/events/2250196018451120.

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Finally, check out Dr. Stephanie Schuttler’s most recent podcast titled “55: How to Make a Wildlife Friendly Backyard”:
https://stephanieschuttler.com/wildlife-friendly-backyard/

One of the things she talks about is eMammal, and camera traps/game cameras. Here’s the site:
https://emammal.si.edu

There are several good resources here, but make sure to check out Dr. Schuttler’s “Camera Setup 2016” video:
https://emammal.si.edu/content/emammal-training

The CNCBC wants game cam images!! If you have one, make sure to set it out, and send the images captured during the project dates to your iNaturalist account.

And, for local fishermen, especially those participating in the April 24 to May 2 Lake Pend Oreille Idaho Club (LPOIC) Spring Derby: send in your fish pics!

Posted on April 12, 2021 03:16 PM by geogehrig