City Nature Challenge 2025
The annual City Nature Challenge with cities around the world collaborating to document urban biodiversity will take place on April 25 – April 28, 2025. Four of Alberta's major urban areas are involved this year and other municipalities are encouraged to take part!
Take photos of any wild flora and fauna seen April 25 – April 28 and upload your observations to the iNaturalist app or iNaturalist.ca. With nearly 25 Canadian cities taking part, we will see which area can make the most observations, document the most species, and engage the most people. It is expected that more than 500 cities globally will participate in 2025! This is a free event and you can participate anywhere within your project boundaries. Look for plants, mammals, birds, insects, fungi, lichens, fish, or even microorganisms in your yard, local parks, natural areas, or the lesser-explored places of our cities!
2025 Dates:
April 25 – April 28, 2025 - Observation Period: Taking pictures of wild plants and animals.
April 29 – May 4, 2025 - Upload and Identification: Identifying what was found.
Results will be announced on Monday May 5, 2025.
Alberta Cities Participating:
Calgary Metropolitan Region:
Locations: Airdrie, Chestermere, City of Calgary, Cochrane, Alberta, Foothills County, Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, High River, Okotoks, Rocky View County
Organizer: Matt Wallace
Join the iNaturalist project: https://inaturalist.ca/projects/city-nature-challenge-2025-calgary-metropolitan-region
Edmonton Metropolitan Region:
Locations: Edmonton plus the adjacent communities of St. Albert, Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Enoch, Ft. Saskatchewan, Sherwood Park and vicinity, Beaumont, Nisku, Leduc, and Devon
Organizer: Greg Pohl
Join the iNaturalist project: https://inaturalist.ca/projects/city-nature-challenge-2025-metro-edmonton-area
Lethbridge:
Locations: Lethbridge, AB
Organizer: Curtis Goodman
Join the iNaturalist project: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2025-lethbridge
Red Deer Area:
Locations: Red Deer County and Lacombe County, which includes Red Deer, Lacombe, Bentley, Blackfalds, Bowden, Eckville, Innisfail, Penhold, and Sylvan Lake.
Organizer: Anne Dempsey
Join the iNaturalist project: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2025-red-deer-area