Children document citys biodiversity

In a bid to create and spread awareness on biodiversity, students of various schools took up surveys on plants, birds and butterflies and presented the results at the LV Prasad Eye institute (LVPEI) on Saturday. Students from Hyderabad Public School in Ramanthapur, Iqbalia international School, Oxford Grammar School and Chirec International School actively participated in WWF’s initiative of documenting the biodiversity of Hyderabad.

More than 500 students from the city took part in the pilot phase of ‘Urban iNature Watch Challenge’, where they documented various plant, bird and butterfly species using the apps iTress, iBirds and and iButterflies. At a time when most educational institutions prohibit the use of mobile phones in campus premises, this initiative has given a completely different perspective to students.

Noticing their growth and decline patterns, students prepared graphs which depicted how the climate and other factors like host habitat alter the growth and decline of the respective species. The apps were instrumental in identifying the species by their colour, texture, pattern and even sound (in case of birds). While some found the surveys quite insightful, others found it easy to remember the scientific names of species, which was otherwise a nightmare.

A student Namrita, who took part in the survey, says, “I observed the school premises more closely in these six months than I did in the past five years of my study here.” Vijayalaxmi, the biology teacher of Hyderabad Public School, said that it was during these surveys that she noticed students engrossed in the subject. Apart from collecting data and contributing to the records of species, the students clicked some amazing photographs like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon. In fact Meridian School students indentified 674 birds, butterflies and trees in and around its campus.

With the pilot programme receiving an overwhelming response, the initiative will be introduced in other schools too. The programme will not only help young minds contribute to essential data books of plant and animal species but also be instrumental in spreading awareness on environment, besides stressing on its conservation. With such programmes happening in the city, the days are not far when young minds will contribute to environment studies and prevent the flora and fauna from entering the ‘Red Book’.

Also, the WWF officials have asked to students to continue with their work. “The results yielded so far are very promising. Schools can continue to collect more data in their upcoming academic year and the best data would be awarded during the Wildlife Week in October,” Farida Tampal, director of WWF Hyderabad said. WWF will also be organising a trip to nearby protected areas in the city for five dedicated students from each school to give them an exposure to biodiversity and enhance their interest towards appreciating nature.