Fieldscope is a similar project that came out of NatGeo. It is currently operated by BSCS.
Fieldscope is now very old and is being rebuilt with modern tech. I did not write the app itself, but kept it alive for 2 years.
Working on it opened up my eyes to all the wonderful world of citizen science. Specially how many (really many) scientific datasets are available for open use.
One of the datasets I enjoyed working with is one that centers around the Chesapeake Bay project. It contains flora observations taken by citizen volunteers. It's very interesting to learn about the history of the Chesapeake Bay and to be able to map how it has changed over time.
I exhort those intersted in open source and science to look into tackling problems in this space. Observing and recording nature is not a solved problem. Better software will certainly help get there. I'm on the process of doing so myself. Makes no sense to waste all this experience without benefit open source and science.
If you are part of a scientific project please reach out to me. Email in profile.