Frankfort City Nature Challenge
Become a citizen scientist for Franklin County with Woods and Waters Land Trust! The City Nature Challenge is one of the largest community-science events in the world. It’s taking place in your backyard April 26 to 29, 2024.
Here's how the City Nature Challenge works:
From April 26 to 29, take a photo of a plant, fungi, animal, insect or bird, and upload it to the iNaturalist app. Be sure to include the location of your observation. Any photos recorded in Franklin County will be added to the Frankfort City Nature Challenge project. If you are new to iNaturalist, check out this helpful info sheet.
Participate in the City Nature Challenge on your own—in your yard, a local forest, a stream, your favorite park, along a sidewalk, etc.—or come to a free kid’s hike, wildflower walk, bioblitz led by WWLT, Frankfort Audubon Society, or one of our other community conservation partners.
It’s OK if you don’t know what it is that you’re photographing. Take a clear photo, and it will be identified by fellow City Nature Challenge participants and iNaturalist volunteers.
NEW this year: Submit at least five observations of wild nature, and you’ll receive a participation certificate (in English o en español) and a pack of WWLT’s Urban River Initiative wildflower and native grass mix!
Join us at POURter’s on Thursday, May 2 at 6 pm. WWLT staff, local biologists, and other experts will be on hand to help you identify what you have photographed. At the end of the evening we will award a few prizes—
Most Species Observed
Most Unique Observation
Most Observations In A Single Day
Greatest Number of Bird Species Observed
On May 6, worldwide rankings will be announced by the Community Science teams at the California Academy of Sciences and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County! We’ll find out which area gathers the most observations of nature, finds the most species and engages the most people in the City Nature Challenge. (Last year, Franklin County had more than 950 observations made!) We’ll update you on Facebook, Instagram and our enewsletter with the results.
Follow our City Nature Challenge project here for notifications about news and to follow others’ observations.
We look forward to connecting with each other and the natural world during this global event!
Join local CNC events
All events are family friendly and free to attend
Saturday, April 20 10am - 2pm Together Frankfort and Liberty Hall Historic Site are co-hosting the 2024 Earth Day Celebration in the beautiful gardens of the Orlando Brown House. Liberty Hall’s Garden Curator and WWLT staff will be on hand to give instruction on how to use the free iNaturalist app for Frankfort’s City Nature Challenge and will give a tutorial that afternoon at 1:30
Friday, April 26 at 12pm WWLT will lead an Urban Nature Hike up the 0.8 mile paved Thorobred Trail and back beginning at the base of the trail near Commonwealth Credit Union
Friday, April 26 from 1pm to 3pm Bioblitz at Vaughn Branch Nature Preserve. Join Kentucky Division of Water aquatic biologists at Vaughn Branch Nature Preserve (near the Franklin County Humane Society) as they search for fishes, crayfish, dragonfly larvae, salamanders, and other animals that call Vaughn Branch home.
Saturday, April 27th at 9 am Cove Spring Wetland Bird Walk. Participants will meet at the wetland parking lot on the west side of US 127. Frankfort Audubon board member Rob will lead the bird walk. We hope to see returning warblers like the Yellow-throated Warbler and Prothonotary Warbler, as well as swallow and Red-winged Blackbird activity. The event is free. The trail may be a little muddy, so wear appropriate shoes. Bring binoculars if you have them, or there will be a few loaner pairs.
Saturday, April 27 at 2pm Urban River Tour at Riverview Park. We will look for birds, wildflowers and other signs of wild nature on this easy stroll along the River Walk. Participants should meet near the amphitheater.
Sunday, April 28 at 9am Meet plant and birding experts Rachel Peake and Gary Sprandel at Liberty Hall Historic Site for an Audubon Nature Walk through the Gardens and along Riverview Park
Sunday, April 28 at 2pm Explore the trails at West Sixth Farm with WWLT Executive Director and Ecologist, Heather Housman where a variety of native spring wildflowers can be seen. This Wildflower Hike begins at the Trailhead near the main parking lot.
Monday, April 29 at 10am Wild About Wildflowers Join WWLT Executive Director again Monday morning at the trailhead of Vaughn Branch Nature Preserve for another look at native plants
Thursday, May 2, at 6pm Drink with an expert at POURter's tap house where biologists and other local experts will help identify wild nature observed during the CNC.
Sabado 20 de Abril, 10am – 2pm
La cuidad de Frankfort y el sitio histórico Liberty Hall serán coanfitriones de la celebración del Día de la Tierra en 2024 en los exquisitos jardines de Orlando Brown House. El curador del jardín de Liberty Hall y el personal de WWLT estarán presentes para brindar instrucciones sobre cómo usar la aplicación iNaturalist para el City Nature Challenge de Frankfort. Además, se llevará a cabo un tutorial sobre la aplicación a la 1:30 pm esa tarde.
Viernes 26 de Abril, 12pm
WWLT liderará una caminata por la naturaleza urbana por el sendero pavimentado Thorobred Trail de 0.8 millas, comenzando en la base del sendero cerca de Commonwealth Credit Union.
Viernes 26 de Abril, 1pm
Únase a los biólogos acuáticos de la División de Agua de Kentucky en la Reserva Natural de Vaughn Branch (cerca de la Sociedad Protectora de Animales del Condado de Franklin) mientras buscan peces, cangrejos de río, larvas de libélulas, salamandras y otros animales que habitan en Vaughn Branch.
Sábado 27 de Abril, 9am
Cove Spring Wetland Bird Walk Los participantes se reunirán en el estacionamiento del humedal en el lado oeste de la US 127. Rob, miembro de la junta directiva de Frankfort Audubon, dirigirá la caminata de aves. Esperamos ver reinitas que regresan, como la reinita garganta amarilla y la reinita protonotaria, así como actividad de golondrinas y mirlos de alas rojas. El evento es gratuito. El sendero puede estar un poco embarrado, así que use calzado adecuado. Traiga binoculares si los tiene, o habrá algunos pares prestados.
Sábado 27 de Abril, 2pm
Urban River Tour at Riverview Park. Buscaremos aves, flores silvestres y otros signos de naturaleza salvaje en este sencillo paseo por el River Walk. Los participantes deberán reunirse cerca del anfiteatro.
Domingo 28 de Abril, 9am
Conozca a Rachel Peake y Gary Sprandel, dos expertos en plantas y observación de aves, en el sitio histórico Liberty Hall para una caminata por los jardines y el parque Riverview.
Domingo 28 de Abril, 2pm
Reúnase en el lote de grava para explorar los senderos en West Sixth Farm con Heather Housman, la directora ejecutiva y ecologista de WWLT. En estos senderos se puede ver una variedad de flores silvestres nativas de primavera.
Lunes 29 de Abril, 10am
¿Loco por las flores silvestres? Únase nuevamente con Heather Housman, la directora ejecutiva de WWLT, el lunes por la mañana en la entrada de la Reserva Natural de Vaughn Branch para aprender y ver mas plantas nativas.
Jueves 2 de Mayo, 6pm
Disfrute una bebida con un experto en la cerverzeria Pourters. Reflexionaremos sobre todas las fantásticas observaciones registradas a través de iNaturalist y aprenderemos sobre el proceso de identificación.
This year’s partners include: Frankfort Audubon, Wild Birds Unlimited Frankfort, Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves, Division of Water, Liberty Hall Historic Site, POURter’s, and West Sixth Farm.
