susanhewitt's Journal

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I live in Manhattan, NYC. Yesterday a good friend of mine (@catverde) drove the two of us up to Rockefeller State Park Preserve, which is in the Hudson Valley near Pleasantville, about an hour's drive north of NYC. In the park during the afternoon, @pbuttercup was running a wildflower walk around Swan Lake, encouraging people to put their observations up on iNat.

I was kind of amazed once I got home again to find out that in about three hours on a Saturday afternoon, I had seen at least 26 lifers -- 26 species that I had never seen before.

That total of new things consisted of 18 vascular plant species, 6 arthropod species, and 2 fungi. And that total may quite likely increase, as people here on iNat check and improve my existing IDs, and also probably put a few IDs on things that don't yet have one.

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Out of the lifer arthropods I observed, the insects were:

Cordyligaster septentriodis, a bristle fly
Oulema sp., a handsome beetle
Spongy Oak Apple Gall Wasp
Bumelia Webworm Moth

Arachnid lifers were:

Eastern Harvestman
Aceria nyssae on Black Tupelo

Fungi lifers included:

Conifer mazegill -- growing out of a picnic bench

The vascular plants included:

Fox Grape
Shining Bedstraw
Wild Basil
Panicled Ticktrefoil
Round-headed Bush Clover
Deptford Pink
Bush's Sedge
Pointed Broom Sedge
Whorled Loosestrife
Meadow Buttercup
Meadow Rue
Sanicle
Pussytoes
American Lopseed
American Hog Peanut
Wild Sarsaparilla
Honewort
Sallow Sedge

I added all of my observations to the project "Rockefeller State Park Preserve", here:
https://inaturalist.ca/projects/rockefeller-state-park-preserve

And immediately I appeared in third place on their leaderboards for the most observations (155) and the most species observed (102). I seem to have added about 9 species to their iNat list for the preserve, so that's good.

I would love to go back there sometime, and my friend Caterina is interested in going back too. The park has many interesting areas to visit which are different from the areas around Swan Lake, and there are no doubt a lot more new-to-me species to be found in all those areas.

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I wanted to make my journal posts easier for me to search, in order to be able find the ones I wanted to look at again, so I created this Index. I will try to keep it updated.
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2015...................................................................................................................................................

May 01, 2015 "Nature in the West Indies" While staying at Green Flash on Jones Bay, Nevis.
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/4079
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2016.....................................................................................................................................................

Mar 03, 2016 "Why do scientific names change?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/5625

Mar 29, 2016 "Is it Spring yet in New York City?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/5835

May 31, 2016. "A deserted beach on St. Kitts"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/6372

Jun 07, 2016 "Connecticut State BioBlitz 2016, mollusks"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/6421

Jun 21, 2016 "What makes iNaturalist so great?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/6520

Jun 26, 2916 "A salt-loving plant on the roadside"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/6606

Aug 17 2016 "Creatures fallen into the swimming pool"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/6995

Oct 07, 2016 "Using iNaturalist in Southern California"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/7477

Nov 25, 2016 "Is it wrong to feed wild animals?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/7921

Dec 11, 2016 "Every seashell is a death"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/8026
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2017..............................................................................................................................................

Jun 04, 2017 "Seashells from an island in New York City"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/10347

Jun 25, 2017 "Exotic shells in weird places"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/10608

Jul 08, 2017 "Non-marine mollusks from Randall's Island, NYC and Wave Hill in the Bronx"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/10751

Sep 30, 2017 "Using iNaturalist in Southern California, Part 2"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/11857
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2018................................................................................................................................................

Jan 12, 2018 "Sanibel Island versus Randall's Island"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/13668

Jan 21, 2018 "Seashell list from New Haven, Connecticut"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/13814

Feb 01, 2018 "Mystery of the distribution of an estuarine clam species"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/14009

Mar 05, 2018 "Updated list of mollusks from Randall's Island"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/14576

Apr 17, 2018 "Bad foot forces me to concentrate..."
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/15535

Apr 18, 2018 "Earthquake today on Nevis"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/15536

May 07, 2918 "The Naturalist versus the Weed Whacker, part 1, West Indies"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/16366

Sep 19, 2018 "The Naturalist versus the Weed Whacker, part 2, New York"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/18709

Nov 12, 2018 "Seaweeds of NYC"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/19785
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2019.................................................................................................................................................

Feb 02, 2019. "More marine mollusks from Saba, Caribbean Netherlands"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/21280

Apr 27, 2019 "City Nature Challenge 2019, a nice day"
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/carl-schurz-park-biodiversity-project/journal/24137

May 01, 2019 "City Nature Challenge 2019 - the days for identification"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/24431-city-nature-challenge-2019

May 09, 2019 "City Nature Challenge 2019 - thanks everyone!"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/24761

May 09, 2019 "And now, forward... De Kay's Brownsnake"
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/carl-schurz-park-biodiversity-project/journal/24763

Jun 02, 2019. "Plant pests, pathogens and galls, why do we overlook them?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/25267

Jun 26, 2019 "Fungal pathogens on plants in NYC"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/25709

Jun 26, 2019 "Leafminer species in NYC"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/25711

Jul 10, 2019 "Insect and mite plant pests in NYC"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/archives/2019/07

Jul 11, 2019 "Carl Schurz Park, July is summer, Eastern Cicada-killer Wasp"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/26107

Aug 08, 2019 "How to tell a Brown-lipped Snail from a White-lipped Snail"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/26586
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2020.....................................................................................................................................

Jan 01, 2020 "On the iNaturalist global leaderboards for December 2019"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/29786

Feb 24, 2020. "Scale insects are amazing"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/31049

Mar 20, 2020 "Great fleas have little fleas upon their backs to bite 'em"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/31916

Apr 12, 2020. "The Green Man"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/32949

Apr 15, 2020 "More of the Green Man"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/33155

Apr 26, 2020 "What does a "stay-at-home" order mean?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/34052

May 01, 2020 "Mosses of Manhattan"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/34518

May 22, 2020 "Viruses attacking plants, not people"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/36292

Jun 30, 2020 "Freshwater habitats, the flora and fauna?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/37897

Jul 08, 2020 "Volunteer plants in Carl Schurz Park"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/38130

Oct 01, 2020 "Euphorbia peplus, the Petty Spurge"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/41894

Oct 01, 2020 "The genus Phyllanthus"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/41918

Oct 16, 2020 "Orchard Beach, NYC, marine life species"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/42934

Nov 11, 2020 "Want to learn about the seashells of the Northeastern US?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/43831

Nov 11, 2020 "Plumb Beach Brooklyn, NYC, marine life"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/43832

Dec 09, 2020 "Project: Marine Mollusks of the Eastern Seaboard, dead or alive"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/44630

Dec 25, 2020 "Senior Hiker magazine, "An Urban Naturalist", an article by Susan Hewitt about using iNat to explore Randall's Island"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/44932-senior-hiker-magazine-an-urban-inaturalist-an-article-by-susan-hewitt-about-using-inat-to-explore-randall-s-island

Dec 31, 2020 "On iNaturalist's global leaderboards for December 2020"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/45081
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2021................................................................................................................................................................

Jan 08 2021 "Philadelphia Academy, I will give a Zoom talk about iNaturalist and shells"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/45304

Mar 17, 2021 "Finding the Magnolia Threetooth land snail, Triodopsis hopetenensis, in NYC"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/47845-finding-the-magnolia-threetooth-land-snail-triodopsis-hopetenensis-in-nyc

May 14, 2021 "Sanibel nature is so great, and so varied"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/51835-sanibel-nature/edit

May 14, 2021 "Susan Hewitt gives a Zoom talk to the Marine Biological Association of the UK"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/51854
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvATd6Qo0UY

May 20, 2021 "Unknown stem galls on Common Mugwort"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/52165

Jun 02, 2021 "How to find small and tiny seashells to increase your life list"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/52887

Jul 02, 2021 "Birds that visit my NYC bird feeder"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/53864

Jul 03 2021 "Why am I interested in malacology and nature study?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/53878

Aug 01, 2021 "Randall's Island, a nature outing"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/54883

Aug 27, 2021 "Summer bucket list in NYC"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/55757

Sep 28, 2021 "Governors Island, once military, then coastguard, but now lots of nature!"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/57332

Dec 14, 2021 "Rare shells from Turner Beach, Captiva, on the Gulf Coast of Southwestern Florida"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/60465

Dec 14, 2021 "On the iNaturalist leaderboards for December, three years running?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/60485
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2022......................................................................................................................................................

Jan 03, 2022 "Inwood Hill Park on January 2nd, fungi, snails & slugs, moss"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/60913

Jan 04, 2022 "Captiva island yields three Elliptical Sportellas , a small shell, but a big story"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/60959

Mar 01, 2022 "Interviewed by the New York Times about iNaturalist"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/62471

Apr 13, 2022 "Butterflies from the island of Nevis, April 2022"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/63968

Apr 17, 2022 "Why don't I make more seashell observations on Nevis, West Indies?"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/64102

Apr 21, 2022 "Spiders from Saint Kitts and Nevis, April 2022"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/64368

Apr 23, 2022 "Fort Ashby, Nevis, West Indies, an Earth Day Clean-up and Nature Survey"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/64478

Apr 24, 2022 "Moths from the island of Nevis, West Indies, April 2022"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/64322

May 07, 2022 "Back to NYC for spring and part of City Nature Challenge"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/65581

May 20, 2022 "Sutton Place Parks"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/66309

May 30, 2022 "Conservatory Garden in Central Park, a renovation"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt/66615

Jun 19, 2022 "Rockefeller State Park Preserve, near Pleasantville, NY
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/67410

Jun 24, 2022 "INDEX to Susan Hewitt's iNaturalist journal posts"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/67574

Jun 30, 2022. "On these iNaturalist project leaderboards"
https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/67774-on-these-inaturalist-project-leaderboards

July 23, 2022. "Stink Bug species I have found"
https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/susanhewitt
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I decided to make a list of the projects (21 of them) in which I am currently on the top of both of the project leaderboards. In this list, the two numbers following the name of the project are the number of observations I have made, and the number of species I have observed, as of today.

Some items on this list will not change as time passes, because the project is now closed, but some are ongoing, and therefore will change.

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ABIOME: Wild plants and animals of the Lesser Antilles: 8,719, 717

Biodiversity of Saint Kitts and Nevis, 7,898, 623

Biodiversity of Randall's Island, 17, 970, 1,273

Biodiversity of Carl Schurz Park, 8,338, 771

City Nature Challenge 2019 Manhattan, 1,777, 335

City Nature Challenge, 2020, 2,516, 303

Central Park Observations, 10,486, 777

Eastern Seaboard Mollusks, 4,419, 261

Eastern Shore Seashells, 5,521, 282

Governors Island Wildlife (Traditional), 1224, 425

Gov Island/Fall 2021 NYU BioBlitz!, 1,013, 384

Harlem River, 90th-125th St. + Pier 107. 2,187, 300

Jackson Heights Urban Nature Club Observations. 106,441, 4,129

Moths of New York County. 673, 98

Plant Pathogens of the Eastern United States. 2793, 233

PURSUE PORCELAIN-BERRY. 796

New York City EcoFlora. 83,061, 2,485

SEARCH FOR SOLANUM. 142, 6

SEEK SEASIDE GOLDENROD. 346

Wider Caribbean Shells. 291, 136

Wild Sanibel Island. 8,734, 916
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Here is an additional list of projects for which I am on the leaderboards, but not at the top of both of the leaderboards. There are 35 of those projects. Obviously some of the items on this list will change as time passes, although the closed projects will not change.
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Amazing Aberrants, I am # 4 in number of observations.

Backyard Bio, I am # 4 in number of observations.

Behold Baccharis, I am #3 in number of observations.

Biodiversity of the Flushing Creek Estuary, I am #3 in numbers of both observations and species.

Airport Ecology, I am # 5 in term of observations

Animal-caused plant diseases of North America. I am # 1 in terms of observations, # 3 in terms of species.

Backyard Bio 2022 I am #3 in terms of observations and #5 in terms of species.

Beetle Biodiversity of New York State. I am #1 in terms of observations, and #4 in term of species.

Butterflies of New York County (Manhattan). I am # 1 in terms of observations, and # 4 in terms of species.

Bus Stop Observations. I am # 4 in terms of observations and species.

Biodiversity of the Flushing Creek Estuary, I am #3 in terms of both observations and species.

Animal-caused plant diseases of North America. I am # 1 in terms of observations, # 3 in terms of species.

Backyard Bio 2022 I am #3 in terms of observations and #5 in terms of species.

Beetle Biodiversity of New York State. I am #1 in terms of observations, and #4 in term of species.

Empire State Native Pollinator Survey, I am #2 in terms of most observations.

Climbing the Walls, I am #2 in terms of observations and #3 I terms of species.

Fungi of NYC - New York Mycological Society, I am #1 in terms of observations and #4 in terms of species.

Global Pollinator Watch. I am #1 in terms of observations.

COVID-19 Quarantine Blitz!. I was #1 in terms of observations.

DANGEROUS DUO. I was #4 in terms of observations.

Empire State Native Pollinator Survey. I was #2 in terms of observations.

Fungi of NYC - New York Mycological Society. I am #1 in terms of observations and #4 in terms of species.

Global Pollinator Watch. I am #1 in terms of observations.

Galls of the Eastern United States. I am #5 in terms of observations.

Leafminers of North America. I am #2 in terms of observations.

Lichens of New York City. I am #1 in terms of observations.

New Year's Day 60-Minute Bioblitz 2022. I was #2 in terms of observations and #3 in terms of species.

Non-Metazoan Plant Diseases of North America. I am #1 in terms of observations and #2 in terms of species.

Personal Bioblitz 2021. I was #2 in terms of observations.

Personal Bioblitz Spring 2017. I was #4 in terms of observations.

REPORT MUGWORT. I was #2 in terms of observations.

Nightshade Biodiversity (Genus Solanum). I am #1 in terms of observations.

Personal Bioblitz 2022. I was #4 in terms of observations.

Personal Bioblitz Spring 2018. I was #3 in terms of observations.

Rockefeller State Park Preserve. I am #3 in terms of observations and #3 in terms of species.

VERIFY VERONICA. I was #3 in terms of observations and #2 in terms of species.

WATCH FOR WHITE SNAKEROOT. I was #5 in terms of observations
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So, in total, I am present somewhere on the leaderboards of 56 different iNaturalist Projects.
That is 56 out of the 187 projects I have taken part in over the years. That's 31% of them. Not bad!
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