You’re invited to get outside, connect with nature and show Melbourne’s amazing biodiversity to the world during the global 2022 City Nature Challenge from Friday 29 April to Monday 2 May 2022.
The City of Stonnington is joining forces with 20 other local councils across Greater Melbourne to compete with hundreds of cities around the world in this citizen science project organised by the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and the California Academy of Sciences.
This year will be Stonnington’s second year participating, having placed 34th out of nearly 450 cities worldwide for the most observations made during the Challenge in 2021.
Over a period of four days, make as many observations of wild insects, animals, fungi and plants as possible, by taking photos of what you see in your neighbourhood and uploading these to the iNaturalist app. You don’t need to be an expert to make an observation – simply take a guess at describing what you see (e.g., plant, spider, bird).
Your observations will be added to our leader board where you can check out and compare the observations made in other cities around the world. Your records will also contribute to real species databases. This means you’ll be helping us better understand the plants, animals, insects and fungi that call our city home, so that we can work to protect them.
Once completed, the results will be shared with the whole community.
Participating is easy and anyone can take part! Simply follow the steps to prepare, and start exploring Stonnington’s natural environment.
Visit the City Nature Challenge on the City of Stonnington website, and don’t forget to check out the hints and tips as well as a range of free biodiversity webinars and outdoor nature discovery tours!
So, what are you waiting for!? Make a positive impact by observing nature in your neighbourhood, and take action on climate change.
