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California Biodiversity Day

Celebrate California Biodiversity Day (9/7) by heading outside and sharing your observations on iNaturalist!

Celebrate California Biodiversity Day 2023 (September 7) by exploring your local environment all week long!

From September 2–10, join in one or more of the many California Biodiversity Day events being held across the state! Take the "Find 30 Species for CA 30x30" Biodiversity Week Challenge: get outside and explore the nature around you—in your backyard, neighborhood, local parks, and open spaces—and share your findings on iNaturalist. No matter where you are in California, you can discover and celebrate nature and contribute to our understanding of where plants and animals are found!

As a global biodiversity hotspot, California has an immense array of nature to explore. We've compiled a few resources to guide folks in learning more about the nature around them, while contributing valuable data that can be used to answer important local conservation questions. 

Help celebrate California's biodiversity and help inform the state's 30x30 initiative by taking a closer look at nearby nature and documenting your finds on iNaturalist! Explore the nature around you however you choose, whether that's visiting the coast, enjoying a long hike, walking to a nearby park, observing the birds outside your window, or looking for spiders under your couch.

Join the "Find 30 Species for CA 30x30" Biodiversity Week Challenge!

September 2-10, the California Natural Resources Agency is putting forth a challenge for California Biodiversity Week: can you find and document 30 species in California?  

Participating is easy!

  1. Download the iNaturalist app & make an account.
  2. Join the “Find 30 Species for CA 30x30” project (look in the upper right corner of the "About" section for the Join button).
  3. September 2-10, find and photograph 30 (or more!) wild plants, animals, and fungus anywhere in California!
  4. Learn more as your observations are identified!

By joining the project, any observations you make in California from September 2 to 10 will automatically be added to the project, and will help inform the California 30x30 initiative!

Make observations in your neighborhood, in your local park, while out hiking… or join in one of the many events being held throughout California during California Biodiversity Week!

Spread the word! Use the hashtag on social media #CABiodiversityDay 

Find 30 Species Project

Other ways to explore California's Biodiversity