We want everyone to get outside during that time for our global snapshot of biodiversity from May 15-25. I have a special challenge for you that I'm going to take on myself.

Can you make at least one observation from each of the 13 iconic taxa? That's at least one of each of the following:
-Plants
-Protozoans
-Fungi (including lichens)
-Mollusks
-Ray-finned fishes
-Birds
-Reptiles
-Amphibians
-Mammals
-Insects
-Arachnids
-Other Animals (stuff that doesn't fall into another more specific animal category listed above, like most other invertebrates)
-Kelp, Diatoms, and Allies

Some of these are going to be easy, but it's definitely going to vary from place to place. You might have to brush up on what's in Kingdom Chromista and get your hands on a microscope for the Protozoans.

Rules:

1. It has to have a photo, date, and location.
2. It has to be observed during May 15-25 (your local time).
3. You must upload it by Wednesday, May 27 (your local time).
4. It has to have a correct identification that ties it to one of those taxa.

At the end of the snapshot, I'll recognize everyone who met the challenge in another journal post. I hope you'll use this as an excuse to explore something out of your comfort zone!

(Cross posted from http://www.inaturalist.org/projects/national-geographic-great-nature-project)

We sincerely apologize if you have had trouble accessing greatnatureproject.org this morning. While we manage the heavy load, you can also contribute to our global snapshot of biodiversity directly from iNaturalist.org. Thank you for your patience, and please do check back to greatnatureproject.org later!

On Sunday evening (US Eastern Time), we passed 30,000 observations since May 15, and we've still got tomorrow! Great work, everyone! Hope you get a chance to explore on Monday, too.

It's nearly midnight U.S. Eastern Time and the event is drawing to a close around the world, but it's not too late to submit your observations! Right now there are more than 34,000 observations from the last 11 days. How high will it climb? Do you have all of yours submitted?

Later this week I'll crunch the numbers and let everyone know the final count. In the meantime, get those observations in and keep helping each other add IDs!