The Deep currently participates in the British and Irish Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) Spotted on Site campaign, a collaboration with iNaturalist UK and the National Biodiversity Network (NBN).
Spotted on Site is a campaign whereby staff and volunteers from member sites utilise the iNaturalist app to record native species found around their sites, for easy to use data which feeds into projects across the UK, Europe, and the world. Any observations recorded also provide a valuable insight into just how biodiverse BIAZA member sites can be.
In order to discover the flora and fauna present in the grounds around The Deep, we have joined iNaturalist. So far, a total of 1,000 observations have been made, with over 200 different species spotted around our site, including contributions from both Crew and visitors.
To get involved, start by simply downloading the free iNaturalist app onto your smartphone, available from the Apple Store or Google Play, or accessed via web browser. Then, follow the instructions on-screen to set up your account and search for 'The Deep and Native Biodiversity' in the Projects section.
Whilst walking around The Deep's site, take photos of any wild animals, plants, birds, insects or fungi. Once you have uploaded your images, the app's global community will help identify the species and your finds will then be logged to the records for our area.
Your observations will contribute to a huge, worldwide biodiversity information database, as well as helping The Deep build a bigger picture of biodiversity around our site.