Highlights from Wellington’s City Nature Challenge 2023

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Highlights from Wellington’s City Nature Challenge 2023

The iNaturalist City Nature Challenge is an annual event to see which city can record the most observations, species, and participants over a four-day period. 2023 was the third year that Wellington has participated. Science Researcher Lara Shepherd highlights some of the interesting discoveries made during the challenge.

Two men and a young child are exploring rocky shore on the south coast of Wellington.
Te Papa fish experts Andrew Stewart, and friends, looking for interesting critters in Tarakena Bay during Wellington City Council’s public bioblitz event at the 2023 City Nature Challenge. Photo by Lara Shepherd, Te Papa

This year Wellington’s target area expanded from just the Wellington City Council area to include everywhere within the Greater Wellington Regional Council boundary. Consequently, our number of observations and species all increased and we cracked 2000 species observed for the first time (approximately 800 more than last year!). Our number of observers nearly doubled this year to 254 participants.

Map of the observations taken in Wellington during the 2023 iNaturalist City Nature Challenge. It is of the lower North Island with a lot of orange-red squares covering the Wellington region including the Wairarapa and Kāpiti coast.
Map of the observations taken in the wider Wellington region during the 2023 iNaturalist City Nature Challenge. Image via iNaturalist

The thirteen most observed species during the Challenge were all native to the wider Wellington region and, except for the knobbled orbweaver spider, were plants.

New records on iNaturalist for Wellington

Many species were recorded on iNaturalist for the first time in the wider Wellington region during the City Nature Challenge. Some of them are shown below.

A pink jellyfish with tentacles floating in the green sea near the sea floor.
This mauve stinger jellyfish from Island Bay is the first record on iNaturalist south of Tauranga. Photo by mattruglys, CC-BY-NC
A moth with closed wings sitting on a flax leaf.
Habrophila compseuta is a moth found only in New Zealand. This observation from Mt Climie is only the fourth of the species on iNaturalist and the first south of the Waikato. Photo by Christopher Stephens, CC-BY-SA
A forest-green-capped mushroom growing out of a mossy tree trunk.
This vibrant mushroom Entoloma viridomarginatum was seen on Mt Holdsworth. It had not been recorded on iNaturalist from the wider Wellington region previously but has been recorded elsewhere in New Zealand and Australia. Photo by naturewatchwidow, CC-BY
A light-brown lichen growing on at ground level.
This lichen (Rexiella sullivanii) was seen near Mt Holdsworth and was the first iNaturalist record of this species from the southern North Island. Photo by Leon Perrie, CC-BY
A very small shell sitting on the tip of a finger. It is a pale pink colour.
A slipper shell (Maoricrypta youngi) seen at Ocean Beach in the Wairarapa is the first iNaturalist record of this species south of East Cape. Photo by Lisa Bennett, CC-BY
A very small weevil with yellow patches sitting on a woven fiber.
This tiny fungus weevil (Isanthribus proximus) is only found in New Zealand. This is only the second photo of the species on iNaturalist and the first from the wider Wellington region. Photo by Christopher Stephens, CC-BY-SA
A bright orange fungus front that has a coral shape growing out of a piece of rotting ponga.
This orange coral fungus (Ramariopsis crocea), the first record from between Rotorua and Hokitika, was seen near Wainuiomata by Noah D., CC-BY-NC
A thumb and two fingers holding two very small green leaves with brown spots.
Cymadothea trifolii is a fungal pathogen that infects red clover. This observation, by Lisa Bennett, is the first iNaturalist record for mainland New Zealand (it had been previously recorded from Rēkohu) and only the third record from the southern hemisphere. CC-BY
Two examples of fungus that resemble white chilies or white slugs on the wet bark of a tree.
Prior to the 2023 City Nature Challenge, this icicle spine fungus (Mucronella pendula) had only been recorded in New Zealand once, 8 years ago from Dunedin. It was recorded TWICE in the wider Wellington region during this year’s challenge – from Zealandia and Mt Holdsworth. Photo by naturewatchwidow. CC-BY
A small pointed snail shell sitting in the eye of a flower with yellow petals.
This small pointed snail (Cochlicella barbara) was seen in Lyall Bay. It is the first iNaturalist record of this introduced snail from the wider Wellington region. Photo by ecoelijah. CC-BY-NC

Stunning photography

These were some of my favourite photos taken during the City Nature Challenge.

A grey-blue fish with big 'lips' near the sea floor covered in boulders.
This Rāwaru (New Zealand blue cod; Parapercis colias) was photographed at Island Bay by mattruglys. CC-BY-NC
A crayfish sitting on the bottom of a riverbed.
This northern kōura (Paranephrops planifrons) was recorded from the stream in Khandallah Park. Photo Leon Perrie. CC-BY
A large black slug on a wet tree trunk. It looks like a piece of licorice with some white spots on it.
This flatworm (Newzealandia hamiltoni) was seen on Mt Holdsworth. Photo by naturewatchwidow. CC-BY
A black bird with a brown 'saddle' sitting in a leafless tree branch.
A tīeke (North Island saddleback; Philesturnus rufusater) was seen in Zealandia by gneissnz. CC-BY-NC
A green and brown moth with its wings spread sitting on a piece of white cotton.
Christopher Stephens recorded this stunning green moth (Pasiphila bilineolata) from Ōtari-Wilton’s Bush CC-BY-SA
Three small flowers with five petals each. The petals are white with pink stripes coming out from the centre.
This dwarf gentian (Gentianella sp.) was seen on Mt Climie by Christopher Stephens. CC-BY-SA
A bright blue mushroom with a blue cap and stalk growing out of flax undergrowth.
This brilliant blue werewere kōkako (Entoloma hochstetteri), which features on our $50 note, was seen by Noah D. near Wainuiomata. CC-BY-NC
A brown fish with white spots and translucent fins sitting in rocks on the sea floor.
A variable triplefin (Forsterygion varium) was seen at Island Bay by mattruglys. CC-BY-NC
A moth with brown wings sitting on a green grass leaf.
This red-spotted delicate moth (Epicyme rubropunctaria) is only the second record of this species from the wider Wellington region on iNaturalist. Photo by Christopher Stephens. CC-BY-SA

Thank you to everyone that participated this year, both in taking observations and making identifications. Of the cities participating, the Greater Wellington region recorded the most observations, species, and observers within Aotearoa New Zealand. Globally we were 22nd for the number of species recorded.

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3 Comments

  1. I love the idea of a Nature Challenge event! Would be great if Auckland had this as well. Amazing photos 🙂

    1. Author

      Hi Sarah – Auckland did participate this year (any city can sign up). Keep an eye out in April next year for the next event.

  2. Extremely good photography.

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