City Nature Challenge: Baltimore

Thanks to the contributions and observations of local community scientists, City Nature Challenge 2023 was one of Baltimore's best! Collectively, 550 participants made 7,785 observations and identified 1,305 different species living in and around Baltimore, including 387 species of plants, 121 species of insects and 108 species of birds.

City Nature Challenge will return spring 2024—sign up for Conservations News to receive reminders as the date approaches!

Get Nerdy with Nature

City Nature Challenge is an annual community science competition for cities across the globe to find and document the plants and wildlife found in urban areas. As regional coordinator, the National Aquarium is calling on community scientists to explore, identify and document urban wildlife in the Baltimore metropolitan area.

Participants will use the free iNaturalist app to record the species they find during the challenge. All observations made in the following counties and uploaded to iNaturalist during the challenge will automatically be counted towards Baltimore's City Nature Challenge totals: Baltimore City, Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, Howard and Queen Anne's Counties.

The National Aquarium is committed to protecting, enhancing and restoring natural resources for the benefit of all people and wildlife throughout the Baltimore region. Part of that commitment includes knowing which species of wildlife live nearby and the types of habitats they need to thrive.

Ready, Set, Upload

New to iNaturalist? Check out this video for instructions on making your first observation upload, or follow the steps below.

Step 1: Download the iNaturalist app.
Step 2:
Find wildlife and photograph what you find.
Step 3:
Share your observations by uploading your pictures to iNaturalist.

Exploring Baltimore's Biodiversity

Check out the wildlife people are seeing in and around Baltimore today!

The City Nature Challenge is organized by:

If you have questions or if your organization is interested in partnering with us, please email conserve@aqua.org.

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