The City Nature Challenge (CNC) is an international competition with more than 250 cities, towns, and villages from around the world registered this year. Thousands of people from across the globe will get outside to look for nature in their cities.
The CNC has two parts. The first is held between April 30 – May 3. During this time participants take pictures of wild plants and animals. Between May 4 – May 9 participants finalize uploading of observations and the community assists with identifying what was found.
The CNC requests community members help record observations (e.g. take photos using your mobile device or camera and/or record sound clips) of as many species as possible in and around the seven areas of the Maritimes registered for the CNC.
This information will help create a more accurate picture of our area's biodiversity. This is an excellent opportunity to learn how to use iNaturalist and how to make your observations accessible to resource managers and researchers concerned with species distribution and those studying climate change.
To participate download the free iNaturalist app or go to iNaturalist.ca and signup. Join the iNaturalist City Nature Challenge 2021: The Maritimes Umbrella Project and be notified automatically when news items are posted.
There are 7 entries in the CNC from the Maritimes. These include the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM, NS); the Valley (Annapolis and Kings Counties, NS); Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM, NS); Westmorland County (Sackville and Moncton areas, NB); Charlotte County (NB); Fredericton (NB); and Urban PEI (Charlottetown and Summerside areas (PEI). Each of these entries has its own iNaturalist project page which feeds into the Maritimes umbrella project.
These local Maritime City Nature Challenges are collaborative projects organized by a number of partners. For more information on how you, your organization, or a group of friends can participate in the CNC contact: cnc2019hrm@gmail.com
