By Patricia Simpson

During 2018, our Mission Trails Regional Park biodiversity project on iNaturalist added more than 8,000 observations. This is monumental considering the project amassed just over 10,000 observations from 2014 (when it was created) to the end of 2017. In just one year, we nearly doubled the data!

There were a number of unique observations in 2018 of birds, reptiles, and mammals. A northern waterthrush, a pair of snow geese and a hooded merganser all visited Kumeyaay Lake. A Baja California lyre snake, North American legless lizard, and long-nosed snake were also photographed in the park. Of course, we can’t forget that mountain lion photographed last March, creating quite a buzz! But David Cooksy’s long-tailed weasel observation in April would have to be voted the cutest!

For the new year, set a goal for yourself: Grab your camera, hit the trail and post on iNaturalist once a week, once a month, four times a year … whatever works for your schedule!

—Patricia Simpson is a trail guide at Mission Trails Regional Park.