Annual community science event, April 25-28, united people with nature and each other as participants around the world documented Earth’s biodiversity

Livermore, May 6, 2025 – The Livermore Valley exceeded all expectations in its first year participating in the City Nature Challenge, one of the world’s largest community science events. Using the free i-Naturalist mobile app, 131 participants made 2,136 observations of all manner of biodiversity - a whopping 596 species. The Livermore Valley Challenge, hosted by Tri Valley Conservancy, (TVC), April 25 - 28, featured guided outings to hook observers of all ages. Locations included Sycamore Grove Park, Holdener Park, Hagemann Ranch, Del Valle Regional Park, Arroyo Mocho, Granada Native Garden, and many backyards. The Alameda County Resource Conservation District, City of Livermore, and Swaim Biological Inc. also hosted an outing at the Springtown Preserve – a biodiversity hotspot in North Livermore.

Launched by the California Academy of Sciences and the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County (NHMLAC) in 2016, the Challenge started with just 1,000 observers in San Francisco and Los Angeles. In 2025, the Challenge broke numerous records, with more than 102,945 community scientists around the world amassing over 3.3 million observations from 669 cities in 62 countries.

Observations made during the Challenge help scientists detect patterns of biodiversity change on a global and local scale. These wildlife observations provide invaluable insights that support scientists, conservationists, and policymakers to make informed resource management and conservation decisions that can help curb biodiversity loss. City Nature Challenge is aligned with conservation strategies both locally and globally, particularly the 30x30 effort as outlined in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework targets. California is a world leader in 30x30, which aims to protect 30% of the world’s lands and coastal waters by 2030.

“It is exciting to get this powerful experience into our community, especially as it engages youth in heightening their senses while they search for new species. As they observe, they become more aware of the special habitats that support wildlife. We hope that this will ignite more volunteers for habitat restoration and planting CA natives to make a “Homegrown National Park” in their own backyards and schoolyards,” stated Ann Brown, TVC Youth Educator.

How to Participate

Both budding and veteran community scientists can make observations all year round. Photos and sound recordings can be uploaded to iNaturalist, where an online community of naturalists confirms species identifications. On the app or website you can learn more about the plants and animals they find as your observations are identified.

iNaturalist

Signing up is easy and free. Visit inaturalist.org from your browser, or download iNaturalist from the Apple App Store or Google Play store.

Social Media

#CityNatureChallenge
BlueSky handle: @citnatchallenge
Instagram: @citnatchallenge