The City Nature Challenge
The City Nature Challenge is a worldwide Wildlife Recording initiative taking place annually across the globe since 2016. Over four days each Spring around 700 different ‘City Regions’ work together to record and document as much wildlife as possible. The Chester region took part for the first time in 2023 and had an even more successful year in 2024.
In an effort co-ordinated by RECORD along with many partners across the Cheshire West and Chester area, citizen scientists work together to document our local species of plants, animals and fungi using a free app called iNaturalist. The Chester Region City Nature Challenge aims to connect people with wildlife, shining a particular spotlight on urban nature; and to help build community connections, both in person through various events and online through iNaturalist. The challenge brings together organisations, community groups and individuals across the region in a brilliant team effort to help wildlife through recording.
Anything observed within our area via the app counts towards the region’s total and helps to put Chester ‘on the map’ for nature. Crucially, observations made by the public over the four days boost our knowledge of local biodiversity, helping us understand how the wildlife on our doorstep is doing. Observations feed into RECORD’s database of biological records, which is used by ecologists, researchers and other conservation organisations.
Over the two years we have been taking part, momentum has built considerably. In 2023, 80 observers together recorded 2,241 observations of 521 species. This placed us 12th among UK cities and 160th in the world. This was an amazing result for our first year, but in 2024 we were able to do even better, reaching a grand total of 7,362 observations of 841 species. 133 observers helped us towards this achievement, which meant we placed 6th in the UK and 81st in the world.
The City Nature Challenge is an important feature in RECORD’s yearly calendar of engagement, where various events enable us to connect with and involve more people in wildlife recording. Across both years, we have engaged with over 500 participants directly and have often found that the challenge sparks a new interest for people, who then go on to record wildlife year-round.
Preparations are already underway for City Nature Challenge 2025, which takes place 25 – 28 April. The challenge is open to anyone – you don’t need to be a wildlife expert to take part. Just download the free iNaturalist app, photograph your local wildlife, upload and share!
The global City Nature Challenge is organised by Natural History Museum Los Angeles County and California Academy of Sciences and you can find out more about the global event here. You can find out more about the Chester Region City Nature Challenge here.
