This Waterloo naturalist challenged himself to identify 1,000 plants. He's well on his way

Spring is in full bloom across Waterloo region, where colourful plants and flowers are coming back to life. 

It's an especially exciting time of year for 22-year-old naturalist Baxter Naday. 

"I try to get out every day," he said.

The University of Waterloo student is on a mission to identify 1,000 unique plant species within a 50-kilometer radius of Waterloo, Ont. — from Stratford to Acton, and Luther Marsh Wildlife Management Area to Brantford.

He's already a quarter of the way there, having identified more than 250 plant species, including a Sharp-lobed Hepatica and Plantain-leaf Sedge. He's visited natural sites in New Hamburg, Waterloo, Baden and Ayr, and plans to visit Guelph, Brantford and Branchton.

Naday said he was inspired by an online challenge initiated by a local environment consultant. 

Naday, who's originally from Toronto, said he accepted the challenge to help him get to know the region a little better.

"It's my last year of undergrad, so I want to get to know the place before I go off somewhere else. This challenge forces me to stay ... go to places I haven't before, towns I haven't seen. And just as importantly, meet local people that I haven't met before."

Will van Hemessen, environmental consultant in North Dumfries, was the one behind the challenge that first launched in 2018.

"I started it just because I thought it would be fun," he said. "It was a big success. I got a lot of really good feedback. So I run it every year since."

He said in its first year, there were about 22,000 plant observations submitted, but last year there were about 64,000 covering 2,200 plant species. He said naturalists of all kinds have signed up — from high school students curious about nature, to professional botanists. 

"We're engaging people with the natural environment and not just like in their gardens, but like in the provincial parks and conservation areas, the natural areas around them," said van Hemessen.

Initially, the challenge was Ontario-wide; Naday's already completed that one. For 2022 van Hemessen is getting participants to stay within a 50-kilometer radius.

"In the interest of reducing our environmental footprint, particularly carbon footprint, I figured it would be fun to encourage people to stay local and observe as many plants as they could within their local area," said van Hemessen.