Hello to all past City Nature Challenge participants!

This year’s City Nature Challenge is fast approaching! From April 26 - 29, Help put Toronto and GTA on the map as we compete in contributing to biodiversity monitoring in our local communities!

The City Nature Challenge is an annual four-day global bioblitz where cities across the world compete to see which city can gather the greatest number of wildlife observations, find the most species and engage the most people in their community using the iNaturalist platform.

Check out our StoryMap for more info: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/cd885e5688e742c5b7edb61a8c4cde0f

Join EcoSpark's 2024 City Nature Challenge Project to be part of the biggest citizen science event of the year.
Capture and share pictures and sounds of local wildlife on iNaturalist.ca from April 26 - April 29. Contribute to scientific research and learn more about your observations.
Register for City Nature Challenge updates and for a chance to win prizes, from our generous sponsors while supporting local biodiversity

2024 City Nature Challenge Project Page: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2024-toronto-and-gta

Share this event with your friends, families and colleagues. Get as many people involved as possible and help our city win!

Register for a chance to win prizes from Canon Canada, the ROM and Urban Nature Store:

Register here: https://us10.list-manage.com/survey?u=12f2f8a899636adfe10433401&id=b0737a4cbd&attribution=false

• 3 Canon gift cards, each valued at $250 will be raffled to registered participants with at least 5 observations on iNaturalist.ca
• Registered schools with the top 3 most observations will win Canon gift cards, valued at $500, $250 and $100
• The registered participant with the most species observed on iNaturalist.ca will win a one-year Family Membership to the ROM
• Use this code: ECPUNS24 to get 10% off your next purchase with Urban Nature Store

Note: This form, complete with iNaturalist Username MUST be filled out to be eligible for prizes!

Registration Form: https://us10.list-manage.com/survey?u=12f2f8a899636adfe10433401&id=b0737a4cbd&attribution=false

Social Media

CityNatureChallenge2024

X: @EcoSpark_Env, @citnatchallenge | Facebook: @EcoSparkEnv | Instagram:ecospark_env

SIGN UP TODAY: https://us10.list-manage.com/survey?u=12f2f8a899636adfe10433401&id=b0737a4cbd&attribution=false

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber
@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @alyssamc @finding_nimo_ @nikolett6ttn @alexsoliman @ally737 @alyssamc @mkushnir @jean_sebastien_chartier_dumais @nicoleg_cwf

Hello friends, here are the winners for City Nature Challenge 2023: Toronto and GTA in various categories:

Grand Prize winner

Riley Walsh @rileywalsh – Congratulations to Riley Walsh for documenting the most species observed in City Nature Challenge 2023. Riley recorded a total of 299 species in this year’s challenge. Simply amazing! As the grand prize winner for City Nature Challenge 2023, Riley receives a $100 Urban Nature Store gift card, thanks to our sponsor – Urban Nature Store

Runner-ups for the most species observed:

Brent Isojima @brent_isojima - 271 species
Livia Antony @liviaantony - 145 species
Vi Bull @vcbull – 138 species
@sfreeman7 – 106 species

Congratulations to all our runner-ups. All our top 5 species observers will receive a Certificate of Appreciation.

Winner of the most observations recorded

@sfreeman7 – Congratulations to sfreeman7 for recording the most number of observations in City Nature Challenge 2023. sfreeman7 recorded a total of 641 observations for this year’s challenge. Outstanding! As the winner of the most observations recorded, sfreeman7 receives a $50 Urban Nature Store gift card, thanks to our sponsor – Urban Nature Store

Runner-ups for the most observations recorded:

Livia Antony @liviaantony – 434 observations
Alan Kwok @alankwok - 356 observations
Brent Isojima @brent_isojima – 324 observations
Riley Walsh @rileywalsh – 315 observations

Congratulations to all our runner-ups. All our top 5 observers will receive a Certificate of Appreciation.

Winner of the SPRINGO card challenge

Jim Wooller @jjwool2 – Congratulations to Jim Wooller, winner of the SPRINGO card challenge. Jim Wooller wins a bird field guide book.

Runner up of the SPRINGO card challenge:

Gary James @gary-james – Congratulations to Gary James, runner up of the SPRINGO card challenge.

Our top 2 SPRINGO card challenge participants will receive a Certificate of Appreciation.

Lucky draw winner from City Nature Challenge 2023: Toronto and GTA iNaturalist participant list

Congratulations to Noam Markus @noammarkus, the lucky draw winner from City Nature Challenge 2023: Toronto and GTA iNaturalist participant list. Noam receives a $50 Urban Nature Store Gift card, thanks to our sponsor - Urban Nature store + Certificate of Appreciation

Lucky draw winner from new EcoSpark newsletter sign up

Congratulations to Tomoko Uramaru, the lucky draw winner from new EcoSpark newsletter sign up. Tomoko receives a $50 Urban Nature Store Gift card, thanks to our sponsor - Urban Nature store + Certificate of Appreciation

Congratulations to all our winners and runner-ups for your outstanding contribution to City Nature Challenge 2023: Toronto and GTA. EcoSpark will be contacting you via iNaturalist message/email early next week to mail you your prizes and email you the certificates.

Finally, we would like to thank each and every one of you and all our participants for participating in City Nature Challenge 2023. We couldn’t have done it without the collective effort of each and every one of you.

EcoSpark was proud to organize City Nature Challenge 2023 for Toronto and GTA and we hope you had a great time too! Check us out at ecospark.ca and subscribe to our newsletter to stay connected.

Thank you all!

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @alyssamc @finding_nimo_ @nikolett6ttn @alexsoliman @ally737 @alyssamc @mkushnir @jean_sebastien_chartier_dumais @nicoleg_cwf

Hello friends, as you await the winners of our various prizes for City Nature Challenge 2023: Toronto and GTA, we have a fun tool for you to explore!

Check out EcoSpark's City Nature Challenge dashboard

The City Nature Challenge dashboard was created to share the City Nature Challenge results in the GTA! If you’re new to dashboards, a geospatial dashboard is an online interactive platform that displays a web map alongside additional charts and analytics. These can include bar charts, pie graphs, filters, etc. A dashboard is meant to visualize trends, monitor data and make decisions. For example, we can browse the map and locate areas without any data compared to areas with lots of data. Knowing this information due to the dashboard, we can target areas with no data to fill in these gaps.

To navigate the dashboard, zoom in and out of the map and view how the Number of Participants, Observations and Species change. Click the Species Selector to filter by species. Select a User to look up your results or a friend’s results. You can also click on a slice of the Quality Grade or Taxon pie charts to filter and select by research-grade or taxon! View the top 10 species and top 10 users by clicking on the bottom right arrow. Additionally, you can select these blue bars to filter and view your selection! If you participated in last year’s event, search for your 2022 observations.! Have fun exploring!

If you are interested in more mapping applications related to citizen science or Ontario’s natural spaces, check out EcoSpark’s GeoHub here: https://ecospark-ecospark.hub.arcgis.com/

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @alyssamc @finding_nimo_ @nikolett6ttn @alexsoliman @ally737 @alyssamc @mkushnir @jean_sebastien_chartier_dumais @nicoleg_cwf

Hello friends, here are the Canada results for City Nature Challenge 2023!

Across Canada, 43 cities participated in this year's challenge. Take a look at the results below:

Observations

1. Calgary: 9185
2. Greater Victoria: 8604
3. Greater Montreal: 7091
4. Cape Breton: 6331
5. Halifax: 5664
6. Toronto and GTA: 5362 (6th place)

Species

1. Greater Victoria: 1414
2. Toronto and GTA: 917 (2nd place)
3. Halifax: 876
4. Greater Montreal: 844
5. London: 795

Observers

1. Greater Montreal: 461
2. Greater Victoria: 423
3. Toronto and GTA: 387 (3rd place)
4. Calgary: 347
5. Greater Vancouver: 329

Given the rain, hail and wet weather we had over these 4 days, Toronto & GTA did amazingly well! What a wild and wet run it has been!

Thank you to all our observers and identifiers for contributing to this year’s City Nature Challenge. We couldn’t have done it without you.

The top 5 species observed in Toronto & GTA are Red-winged Blackbird, American Robin, Northern Cardinal, Canada Goose and Eastern Grey Squirrel.

In Canada, the total observations are as follows:
74,972 observations
4433 species
3728 participants

The top 5 species observed across Canada are Mallard, Canada Goose, American Robin, Red-winged Blackbird and Praire Pasqueflower

Victoria, BC placed 52nd globally and we had a total of 6 cities in the top 100: in descending order:

Calgary (9185 observations, 775 species)
Greater Victoria (8604 observations, 1414 species)
Greater Montreal (7091 observations, 844 species)
Cape Breton (6331 observations, 645 species)
Halifax (5664 observations, 876 species)
Toronto and GTA (5362 observations, 917 species) – Yay!

Stay tuned for the winners of our various prizes for City Nature Challenge 2023: Toronto and GTA!

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @alyssamc @finding_nimo_ @nikolett6ttn @alexsoliman @ally737 @alyssamc @mkushnir @jean_sebastien_chartier_dumais @nicoleg_cwf

Hello friends, thanks for your patience as you await the results for City Nature Challenge 2023!

The global results for City Nature Challenge 2023 are out! Over 1.87 million observations were made, making City Nature Challenge 2023 the biggest one yet. Wow!

Take a look at the collective results:
Observations: 1,870,763
Species: 57,227+, including more than 2,570 rare/endangered/threatened species
Observers: 66,394
Most-observed species globally: Mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos)

La Paz, Bolivia takes the triple crown with the most number of observations, species and observers this year!

Here are the top cities:

Observations

1. La Paz, Bolivia: 126,435
2. Cape Town, South Africa: 52,518
3. Dallas/For Worth, Texas, USA: 48,021
4. Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico: 42,479
5. Houston-Galveston, Texas, USA: 41,736

Species

1. La Paz, Bolivia: 5,344
2. Hong Kong, SAR, China: 4,469
3. Cosalá, Sinaloa, Mexico: 3,912
4. Cape Town, South Africa: 3,847
5. Houston-Galveston, Texas, USA: 3,707

Observers

1. La Paz, Bolivia: 3,025
2. San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA: 2,488
3. Los Angeles County, California, USA: 1,671
4. Monterrey Zona Metropolitana, Mexico: 1,655
5. Washington DC Metro Area, USA: 1,527

Check out the City Nature Challenge 2023 infographic:

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @alyssamc @finding_nimo_ @nikolett6ttn @alexsoliman @ally737 @alyssamc @mkushnir @jean_sebastien_chartier_dumais @nicoleg_cwf

Hello friends, it’s the final stretch of City Nature Challenge 2023, last two days before the challenge ends and results are announced on May 8th. It’s the final two days of uploading all your observations and helping identify species documented thus far in the challenge. We have recorded 5200+ observations (currently at 6th position in Canada), 900+ species (currently at 2nd position in Canada) and 380+ observers (currently at 3rd position in Canada) so far. Wow! Check out the City Nature Challenge 2023 Canada leaderboard to keep a tally on participating cities across Canada!

Let’s continue to push those observations and species count for Toronto & GTA. Thank you to everyone who’s contributed their observations to the challenge so far and all the identifiers for helping identify species for our wild city.

EcoSpark has some amazing prizes up for grabs:
Grand prize - a $100 Urban Nature Store Gift Card for the winner of the most species observed
Certificate of appreciation for our top iNaturalist observer
$50 Urban Nature Store gift card for the lucky draw winner from iNaturalist participant list
$50 Urban Nature Store gift card for the lucky draw winner from new EcoSpark newsletter signups
Field guide for the lucky draw winner who completes the SPRINGO card

Let’s keep those observations and species count rolling in for our wild city! Stay tuned for the final results on May 8th. Let's go Toronto & GTA!

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @alyssamc @finding_nimo_ @nikolett6ttn @alexsoliman @ally737 @alyssamc @mkushnir

Hello friends, we have completed the first stage of the bioblitz, 4 days (April 28 – May 1) of documenting nature across our city. Wow! What a wild and wet run it has been. We have recorded 4300+ observations (currently at 4th position in Canada), 890+ species (currently at 2nd position in Canada) and 340+ observers (currently at 3rd position in Canada) over these 4 days. Simply amazing! Check out the City Nature Challenge 2023 Canada leaderboard to keep a tally on participating cities across Canada! Thank you to everyone who took the time out to contribute observations and help identify species thus far in the challenge.

Despite the 4 days of rain, hail and wet weather, we have documented some incredible species in our city. Let us know in the comments below your favourite and interesting finds.

The challenge does not end here! You can continue to upload observations you have documented over these 4 days up until May 7th. Help identify all the incredible observations we have documented so far in the challenge and push our species count. Global results will be announced on May 8th.

It’s the final stage, friends! Let’s go Toronto & GTA!

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @alyssamc @finding_nimo_ @nikolett6ttn @alexsoliman @ally737 @alyssamc

Hello friends, it is Day 4 of City Nature Challenge, the last and final day for recording observations before the BioBlitz ends at 11:59pm tonight. We have recorded 3000+ observations (currently at 6th position in Canada), 720+ species (currently at 2nd position in Canada) and 260+ observers (currently at 4th position in Canada) for Day 3 of the challenge! Pretty amazing! Thank you once again for braving the wet weather and for contributing your observations and identifying species thus far in the challenge.

It is so great to see the urban biodiversity we've document so far for our city! Let’s keep that momentum going and push for that triple win! Tag people in the comments below, let’s get more people involved and see what Toronto & GTA has in store for us on this final day of the challenge.

EcoSpark has some amazing prizes up for grabs:
Grand prize - a $100 Urban Nature Store Gift Card for the winner of the most species observed
Certificate of appreciation for our top iNaturalist observer
$50 Urban Nature Store gift card for the lucky draw winner from iNaturalist participant list
$50 Urban Nature Store gift card for the lucky draw winner from new EcoSpark newsletter signups
Field guide for the lucky draw winner who completes the SPRINGO card

It’s the final leg! Let’s go Toronto & GTA!

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @alyssamc @finding_nimo_ @nikolett6ttn

Hello friends, it is Day 3 of City Nature Challenge, last two days before the “collecting observations” part of the challenge ends. We recorded 2000+ observations (currently at 6th position in Canada), 580+ species (currently at 2nd position in Canada) and 180+ observers (currently at 4th position in Canada) thus far! That’s pretty cool considering the rainy weather we’ve been having all day! Thank you for braving the cold and wet weather and continuing to document observations and identifying species thus far.

Our city is teeming with wildlife and is so great to see the diversity of wildlife we have here! We are seeing a lot of our early spring migrants from Red-winged blackbirds and Song Sparrows to our native spring blooms such as our Mayapples, Marsh Marigold and Virginia Waterleaf. We’ve also recorded different species of mammals, insects, arachnids, amphibians, benthic and fungi. Amazing!

Feel free to comment below any interesting finds you’ve come across in these two days.

Rain or shine, we are all set for Day 3 of the challenge! Let’s head out in nature, bring our friends and family along and document the wonderful biodiversity of our amazing city!

Let's push for that triple crown and win the title of the wildest city in Canada! Let’s go Toronto & GTA!

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @ginnie4

Hello friends, it is Day 2 of City Nature Challenge! We recorded 900+ observations (currently at 6th position in Canada), 350+ species (currently at 2nd position in Canada) and 100+ observers (currently at 3rd position in Canada) for Day 1 despite the rainy weather! Amazing! Thank you to everyone who has contributed to observations and help identify species thus far.

Look at the amazing list of species we’ve documented for Toronto & GTA. Carolina Spring-Beauty, Trilliums, Eastern Skunk Cabbage, Black-bellied Plover, Common Gallinule, Muskrat, American Beaver, American Winter Ant, Eastern Red-backed Salamander, Juniper-apple Rust and so much more. Superb!

Let’s crank up those observations, spread the word around and get more people involved!

Strap on your boots, wear those rainy jackets and let us document what urban wildlife has in store for us in Day 2 of City Nature Challenge!

Let’s go Toronto & GTA!

@adacb @adam1420 @ajpto @alixmac @alyssa_sandford @angelbjfan @arachnoto @benfreeman @bob15noble @breandan_mc @brent_isojima @brithikesontario @cdrader @cheryl594 @cosmophasis @dianeh913 @fallonlovesplants @friendlyforest @gary-james @garyyankech @ginnie4 @grandmabirder @hanact @helenfong @henderson73 @heron_sparrow @humairae @ilikeboiledegg @iqcreaturehero786 @jc416 @jemredwood @jjwool2 @kathleen_ko @kentross @kipling001 @liviaantony @loganbgray @marilyn20 @marlene-d @mechanikhil @melmac @ms_teacher @murex13 @n_russell @nancybarrett @nickuzhov @nicoleguzik @osborne88 @osirisv @pmero @richardlbaxter @rileywalsh @sfreeman7 @stephenluk @sunrisegardener @susanblayney @that_bug_guy @the_binoculator @tollocroft @uwland_lee @valley554 @vcbull @galloots13 @danabuchbinder @ecalvarez @skuruvil @jacqueline_weber

@alankwok @peterkikic @v4rangian @greatblueheron @skycladtrvlr @megoc @durham_birder @lhp2 @ericka_bonilla @colleencraig @cancon @james4325 @stephenbiggs @nastykake @marcdeblois @shannonak @lamsaa @anagallis1 @peggyf @sophia907 @alyssadm @alalbin @trennonrwint @kmatthewssp @geo81 @aritoad22 @chris__s @adam1420 @lynre @forg_34 @sloeswan @sommer717 @ellegv @alana102 @vk___06ec_779667_morning_star_ms @noammarkus @alrt @jakeoflaherty @ginnie4