June 5, 2020 – To mark Invasive Species Action Month, ISCBC held the What’s in my Backyard Youth Photo Contest throughout the month of May for the third consecutive year. Youth groups, classes and families across BC were challenged to spot and photograph as many invasive species in their yard or local area as possible. The contest was held completely online with the opportunity to enter by posting on Twitter or Instagram using #BCinvasivescontest, or by using the online entry form.
In total, 35 teams from 23 municipalities across the province submitted over 390 photos of invasive species. The Lalani family was the winning team after submitting 64 photos of invasive species to secure the first-place prize of $350 in Mountain Equipment Co-op gift certificates. Team Flora, the Bosch family, was the runner-up winning $200 in gift certificates.
Lauren Bosch commented on behalf of Team Flora:
Our team knew that there were lots of invasive species all around us, but taking the time to identify and photograph every species we could find, really opened our eyes to the vast amount of damaging plants! This was a great experience for all of us as we got to connect with nature as well as with each other during these times. It got us using every resource we could find, which was both hilarious and rewarding. We had identification books, apps, several invasive species lists, and google searches open to compare botanical descriptions (or animal/insect). This really allowed us to get more familiar with invasive species reporting apps, which we have continued to use. Thank you for this fun opportunity.
The contest may be over for this year but you can continue to spot, photograph and report invasive species using the Report Invasives BC App. The app is available free of charge for iPhone, iPad, and Android platforms. Download the Report Invasives BC app for iOS or Android today and make recognizing and reporting invasive species simple!
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