Resources
iNaturalist: www.iNaturalist.org
A great place to start for those interested in getting more involved in their local wildlife community. On this site you can post your photos and observations of wildlife you’ve encountered. You can also view everyone else’s observations all over the world. I like to use this site to see what wildlife has been seen in my area and to search for where certain species have been seen. It’s also useful if you’ve seen an animal or plant, aren’t sure what it is, and would like it identified. Once you’ve posted a photo of the subject, someone will likely have identified it within the next 24 hours. Your contributions to the site are helpful for research and keeping track of the world’s diversity. There’s also a handy app version of the site you can use on your phone.
Merlin Bird ID:
Merlin Bird ID is a fantastic app that you can download for your phone for ID’ing birds near you. If a bird is calling near you, you can turn on the recording feature of the app and it will tell you exactly which bird it is! There’s excellent guides, photos, and descriptions. It’s definitely worth checking out.