City Nature Challenge India
City results published globally
Annual four-day global bioblitz where participants photograph wild plants and animals in their own city and upload them to iNaturalist.
Mode
Hybrid
Fee
Free
Participation format
Individual and team
Teams of 1 or more
Duration
Four days of observation followed by about two weeks of identification
Eligibility
Open to everyone in India with no age or grade restriction and no experience needed. Observations count towards a City Nature Challenge project when they are made inside the boundary of a registered city or state project. Children under thirteen need a parent-managed iNaturalist account.
- Grade level
- Playgroup, Pre-Nursery, Nursery, LKG, UKG & Grade 1 to 12
- Age range
- Open to all ages
- Eligibility region
- Available nationwide across India
- Academic requirement
- No prior knowledge of species identification is required.
- Prerequisites
- An iNaturalist account, which must be parent-managed for children under thirteen
See if your child qualifies.
Rewards and recognition
Recognition
City results published globally
Skills your child builds
Key dates
- Dates
- 30 Apr 2027 to 3 May 2027
Online · iNaturalist
How to apply
- 1Install the iNaturalist app and create a free account
- 2Photograph or record wild plants, animals and fungi during the four-day window
- 3Upload each observation with its date and location
- 4Help identify observations during the identification phase
Rules and guidelines
- Record only wild species, not pets, garden plants or people
- Mark anything cultivated or captive as such
- Only observations made during the four-day window count
- Sound recordings of birds, frogs and insects are accepted
- Take several photos from different angles for a surer identification
- Accept an identification only when you actually agree with it
Technology requirements
- A smartphone with a camera and the iNaturalist app, or a camera and a computer to upload through the iNaturalist website
About this opportunity
The City Nature Challenge is an annual global event in which people record as many wild plants, animals and fungi as they can find in their own city over four days. Observations are photographed and uploaded through the iNaturalist app.
The challenge runs in two phases. During the four-day observation window participants photograph, or record the sounds of, anything wild they come across, from trees and insects to birds, frogs and even tracks and feathers. An identification phase follows, in which participants and the wider iNaturalist community help work out what was recorded. Pets, garden plants and other cultivated species are marked separately, because the challenge is about wild biodiversity.
The challenge is organized globally by the California Academy of Sciences and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. In India it is coordinated by The Naturalist School together with WWF-India, COCOON and CitizenScience.Asia, supported by national, zonal and state coordinators. India has taken part since 2023, and results are published for every participating city alongside cities around the world.
Academic details
Difficulty: Mixed Levels
What's covered
Participants learn what counts as a wild observation, how to photograph plants, animals and fungi so they can be identified, how to upload observations with accurate date and location, and how the community identification process on iNaturalist works.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as a valid observation?
Anything wild, including plants, animals, fungi, insects and even tracks, feathers or droppings. Pets, garden plants and people do not count. Anything cultivated or captive should be marked as such.
Can photos taken before the challenge be uploaded?
No. Only observations made during the four-day observation window count towards the challenge, though older photos can still be uploaded to iNaturalist outside it.
What if a child cannot identify what they photographed?
That is fine and is the point of the second phase. Observations are uploaded without an identification, and the iNaturalist community suggests what the species is during the identification period.
Does a family need to live in a listed city to take part?
Observations count towards a City Nature Challenge project when they fall inside a registered city or state project boundary. In 2026 those projects covered roughly 28 states and union territories. Anyone outside a boundary can still record on iNaturalist.
How much time does taking part need?
There is no minimum. A participant can upload a single observation or spend all four days recording, and both count.
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