a white background with a pattern of yellow lines on it .

iNaturalist

Explore and share observations from the natural world.
iNaturalist logo

iNaturalist is a platform that connects people with nature by allowing them to record and share observations of plants, animals, and other organisms.

With millions of users worldwide, iNaturalist creates a community of scientists, naturalists, and everyday citizens who contribute valuable biodiversity data for scientific research and conservation efforts. By documenting and sharing your encounters with nature, you contribute to a greater understanding of global biodiversity and help to protect it for future generations.

What is iNaturalist?

iNaturalist is an online social network that facilitates the sharing of biodiversity information to help people learn about nature. It is a crowdsourced species identification system and an occurrence recording tool that allows users to document their observations, collaborate with others, and contribute data that supports scientific research and conservation.



iNaturalist is designed to generate, share, explore, and curate data collected by its community, but it is not a repository for external data or a tool for mapping non-living objects. It emphasizes sharing observations of living organisms and encourages participation in citizen science projects to support biodiversity science and conservation.

Key Features of iNaturalist

  • Record Your Observations: Capture your encounters with organisms and maintain life lists in the cloud.
  • Contribute to Science: Your observations help create research-quality data for scientists worldwide.
  • Crowdsourced Identifications: Connect with experts who can identify the species you observe.
  • Engage in Citizen Science: Join existing projects or create your own to contribute to biodiversity knowledge.
  • Learn About Nature: Interact with a global community of naturalists to build your knowledge.
  • Run a Bioblitz: Host events to discover and record as many species as possible in a specific area.
  • Works on All Devices: Access iNaturalist through mobile apps, even without internet access.


A diagram of inaturalist

Detailed Features and Applications

Record and Share Observations

iNaturalist enables users to document their encounters with wild organisms and share these observations with a community of naturalists and scientists. Every observation contributes to a global dataset that helps scientists track the distribution and abundance of species.


Contribute to Science

Each observation made on iNaturalist has the potential to contribute to biodiversity science. The platform shares your findings with scientific data repositories like the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), helping researchers access crucial data. Simply observe and upload; iNaturalist takes care of the rest.


Connect with a Community

iNaturalist fosters a collaborative community where users can help each other identify species, discuss findings, and learn from one another. Through crowdsourced identification, you gain access to expert knowledge and insights about the organisms you encounter.


Engage in Citizen Science Projects

Join existing citizen science projects that align with your interests, or create your own project to focus on a particular conservation goal. This enables collective efforts in data collection, analysis, and sharing, making a meaningful contribution to biodiversity knowledge.


Educational and Learning Opportunities

iNaturalist provides a platform for users to build their understanding of the natural world. By engaging with others, you can expand your knowledge, help others learn, and deepen your appreciation for biodiversity.


Host a Bioblitz

Organize or participate in a Bioblitz, an event where participants try to find and identify as many species as possible in a specific area within a defined time frame. This collaborative effort helps generate valuable data for local and global conservation.



Accessibility Across Devices

With mobile apps available for iOS and Android, you can record observations anytime, anywhere. iNaturalist’s apps work offline, allowing you to make and save observations without an internet connection, which you can upload later.

A map of the world with a lot of dots on it

About iNaturalist

iNaturalist began in 2008 as a Master's final project by Ken-ichi Ueda, Nate Agrin, and Jessica Kline at UC Berkeley's School of Information. After graduation, Nate and Ken-ichi continued to develop the platform, with support from Sean McGregor. In 2011, Ken-ichi partnered with Scott Loarie, and together they formed iNaturalist, LLC, which led to the platform's growth through numerous collaborations.


By 2014, iNaturalist became an initiative of the California Academy of Sciences and expanded further in 2017 by becoming a joint initiative with the National Geographic Society. In 2023, iNaturalist transitioned into an independent non-profit organization.


Today, iNaturalist partners with a global network of organizations, known as the iNaturalist Network, to provide localized experiences and broaden its impact in advancing biodiversity science and conservation efforts worldwide.


All information, images and videos sourced from https://www.inaturalist.org/

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