NatureMapping with Project AWARE
In June, 2006, the Iowa NatureMapping Program Coordinator, Jason
O'Brien, joined the Iowa Department of Natural Resources for part of its Project
AWARE canoe trip on a lower stretch of the Iowa River and one of its
smaller tributaries. AWARE stands for A Watershed Awareness River
Expedition. The goal of this project is to increase awareness about
water quality issues that threaten the health of Iowa's water resources,
and promote advocacy and action towards their improvement and
protection. Iowa NatureMapping was asked to be involved because wildlife
monitoring is a logical connection to any effort related to watershed
awareness. What happens on the land also happens to the water, and thus,
to wildlife habitat. The quality of a riparian corridor is reflected in
the species observed along its course.
NatureMapping canoed along, engaging several dozen citizen participants
in recording the wildlife they saw each day on the river. To enhance the
data collection procedure, the NatureMapping Coordinator employed Nature
Tracker technology, logging data points for birds, mammals, reptiles and
amphibians, at each bend of the river. (Note: Iowa does not have a
state Nature Tracker sequence developed yet. It used Arkansas's
sequence and changed the species codes afterwards.)
Included here is a map of the route, highlighted here by the Nature
Tracker data. The species observed during the 4 days of monitoring are:
American crow English house sparrow
American goldfinch House wren
American kestrel Indigo bunting
American redstart Killdeer
American robin Lark sparrow
American white pelican Mallard
Bald eagle Mourning dove
Baltimore oriole Muskrat
Bank swallow Northern bobwhite
American beaver Northern cardinal
Belted kingfisher Northern cricket frog
Black-billed cuckoo Northern flicker
Black-capped chickadee Northern rough-winged swallow
Blue jay Northern water snake
Blue-gray gnatcatcher Ouachita map turtle
Brown thrasher Pileated woodpecker
Brown-headed cowbird Raccoon
Bull snake Red-bellied woodpecker
Bullfrog Red-eyed vireo
Cliff swallow Red-headed woodpecker
Common garter snake Red-tailed hawk
Common grackle Red-winged blackbird
Common yellowthroat Ring-necked pheasant
Coyote River otter
Dickcissel Smooth softshell turtle
Eastern cottontail Song sparrow
Eastern kingbird Spotted sandpiper
Eastern phoebe Striped skunk
Eastern towhee Tufted titmouse
Eastern wood-pewee Turkey vulture
European starling Warbling vireo
Fox snake White-breasted nuthatch
Gray catbird White-tailed deer
Gray treefrog White-throated sparrow
Great blue heron Wood duck
Great horned owl Wood thrush
Great-crested flycatcher Yellow warbler
Green heron Yellow-billed cuckoo
Iowa NatureMapping Program
NatureMapping is Iowa's volunteer-driven wildlife monitoring
program. It is a hands-on environmental education program that is
growing and evolving. NatureMapping involves the public in "finding the
pieces of the puzzle".
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