Master Naturalist Melissa Records will discuss smartphone apps you can use to amp-up your outdoor experiences. If you are a little uncertain of using apps, don’t worry! Melissa will help you find and use the right app for hiking trails, track where you are on a hike, identify plants and animals that you see or hear, share your observations with others, or participate in citizen science projects. She will give hands-on instructions, allowing you to test your ability while she is there to answer questions. She'll provide tips and recommendations on a number of apps, including:
- Family-friendly Seek and Prairie State Hikes apps
- Tracking apps MapMyRun, Maprika and onX Hunt
- Identification apps Merlin and BirdNet
- Sharing apps such as eBird and iNaturalist that lets you easily record and share your observations with the scientific community.
You will feel so capable by the time she has finished!
Host: Elizabeth Jeffery, Master Naturalist
Speaker Biography: Melissa has worked as an archaeologist, cartographer, GIS technician, and librarian. She's been involved in computer and gadget testing, troubleshooting, and instruction for most of her professional life. A Master Naturalist since 2016, she's focused her volunteer efforts on publicity, social media, outreach, and the development of a guided tour for the Prairie State Hikes app. She loves getting outdoors, photographing bugs, birds, and flowers, and sharing her passion for nature with others.
Location: Virtual event, participants will receive a Zoom links in their confirmation email, please be sure your email address does not have typos.
If you are new to downloading apps, learn more about how to do this on your specific phone type:
This event is free and open to the public. If you need reasonable accommodations, please call Randy at 217-333-7672