2024 City Nature Challenge

Members of the public in Dundee are being encouraged to take part in the 2024 City Nature Challenge this weekend from Friday to Monday.

The annual global nature survey focuses on recording nature in urban settings. The light-hearted competition challenges individuals to compete to record the most observations of nature and species using a free app.

Dundee will join nearly 700 cities taking part this year and is the only Scottish city registered to participate.

Climate, Environment & Biodiversity Convener Cllr Heather Anderson said: “The City Nature Challenge is a fantastic opportunity for local people to discover and learn about nature on their doorsteps and to add to the information we have about our city.

“We hope that residents get involved in this Citizen Science initiative and scour their own gardens as well as the city’s parks and greenspaces.

“The Challenge will help to increase the overall knowledge of Dundee’s wildlife and what species can be found in the city area. Information gathering is vital to better develop our wider environmental aspirations. It’s anticipated that the City Nature Challenge process can help inform the city’s Biodiversity Action Plan.”

The Council will join Bonnie Dundee, the Dundee Naturalists’ Society, Ninewells Community Garden as well as members of the public in this year’s competition.

To take part, the free iNaturalist app can be downloaded to a smartphone or accessed through the website.

Sharing a photo with iNaturalist assists participants to identify and record the species they have found. Each species record is known as an observation, and all observations made during the event count towards Dundee’s City Nature Challenge.

In 2023, over 1.8 million observations from over 66,000 participants who identified over 57,000 species around the world.

More information about the initiative is available directly from the City Nature Challenge website.