The City Nature Challenge aims to record biodiversity in any quarter of Saskatoon, including yards, bus-stops, along city sidewalks, and in boulevard trees in addition to our amazing city greenspaces. Perhaps there are even organisms of wild biodiversity which have snuck into the family home such as the occasional house fly, etc.

The borders for the Saskatoon Area for the City Nature Challenge are similar to other Canadian cities participating in the City Nature Challenge which include open spaces around their city.

Please record iNaturalist sightings for the City of Saskatoon park spaces, the South Saskatchewan River area (being very careful around water), and on any land within the Saskatoon area as marked on the map. Please be respectful of private property, i.e. record living organism on your own land, or on public space. Living organism can include fungi, insects, birds, waterfowl, plants, animals, anything from nature which is "alive" or can show evidence of life (shells, scat, fur, tracks, feathers, nests, etc)

In the Area Around Saskatoon

In the areas commonly thought of as "rural" or places which happen to be within the boundaries of the Rural Municipalities are the following greenspaces open to the public which Saskatoon and area naturalists visit to document (in alphabetical order):

Beaver Creek Conservation Area
Blackstrap Coulee (North side )
Borden Bridge Campground
Boundary Trail
Bradwell Reservoir Area
Brightwater Marsh and Reservoir
Chappell Marsh Conservation Area
Cranberry Flats Conservation Area
John Heal Canoe Launch
Leisureland-Maple Grove
Paradise Beach
Peter and Lola Pontikes Wildlife Viewpoint
Pike Lake Park
Poplar Bluffs Conservation Area
Porter Lake

There is encouragement to record "native or wild" species in preference to "cultivated or tame" species. Where it is nice to practice the use of iNaturalist on potted house plants, the garden or the family dog or cat, iNaturalist helps scientists- zoologists, entomologists, botanists, ecologists, etc- around the world with the documenting of those organisms which are "native or wild." If you happen to take a picture of something "cultivated or tame" please mark your observation as such please.

Within the City of Saskatoon city limits

To this end, here is a listing of naturalized greenspace sites within the City of Saskatoon city limits. (in alphabetical order)

Donna Birkmaier Park
Gabriel Dumont Park
George Genereux Urban Regional Park
Heritage Park
Hyde Park
Lakewood Park
Mark Thompson Park
Meewasin Trail (alongside the South Saskatchewan riverbank)
Mendel Site (old)
Northeast Swale
Patricia Roe Park
Richard St. Barbe Baker Afforestation Area
Sanatorium Site
Small Swale
Weir (Respect all signage at the weir, and do not enter places prohibited)

This listing compiled with thanks to Renny W. Grilz, PAg, Resource Management Officer Meewasin Valley Authority, Moira Moser Naturalized Parks Supervisor, Naturalized Parks, Parks Department, City of Saskatoon and three editions of the book Nature Viewing Sites in and around Saskatoon 1992, 2000, 2016 by the Saskatoon Nature Society and the Friends of the Saskatoon Afforestation Areas Inc.

This listing is open to additions, please email friendsafforestation@gmail.com about a site within the area of the City Nature Challenge Saskatoon Area Map which you use to view nature, if a place happened to be inadvertently missed.

The perimeter of the entire Saskatoon Area is 329 km in size.
The area is 6600 km squared
It is roughly 100 km wide east to west
by approximately 70 km north to south

Keeping the 2024 City Nature Challenge in alignment with other years, the border has remained the same to include greenspace areas owned by the city outside of city limits such as Cranberry Flats, etc.

Besides the City of Saskatoon the map shows that the surrounding area of Saskatoon includes
Aberdeen
Asquith
Bergheim
Blucher
Blumenheim
Borden
Bradwell
Clavet
Dalmeny
Delisle
Eagle Ridge
Furdale
Gledhow
Grandora
Langham
Martensville
Neuhorst
Pike Lake
Shields
St. Denis
Swanson
the RM of Aberdeen 373
the RM of Colonsay 342
the RM of Corman Park 344
the RM of Dundurn 314
the RM of Grant 372
the RM of Great Bend 405
the RM of Montrose 315
the RM of Morris 312
the RM of Vanscoy 345
Thode
Valley Park
Vanscoy
Warman

All of these areas (in alphabetical order) are shown to be within the Saskatoon and Area City Nature Challenge YXE iNaturalist area. (The rural municipality areas may be entirely or partially in the CNC YXE DNU area.)

Please email if any are missed friendsafforestation@gmail.com Thanks

Get your classroom kits, posters, pamphlets and learn all about the City of Saskatoon City Nature Challenge

The CNC YXE 2024 webpages are now updated

If you've been keeping up with the latest updates regarding the upcoming City Nature Challenge, you might be aware of the call for nature enthusiasts, including Master Naturalists, bird watchers, youth groups, senior citizens, classrooms, to participate by sharing their nature photographs on the www.iNaturalist.org website. The goal is to contribute to documenting the diverse habitat of the City of Saskatoon

One intriguing category worth exploring is "signs-of-life." This encompasses peculiar items—mysterious and less easily recognizable objects encountered during the quest for native wonders. These signs indicate the presence of life, leaving remnants like feathers, fur tufts, roadkill, bones, skeletons, partial skeletons, snake skins, teeth, insect prey in a spider web, spider webs, owl pellets, castings, turkey vulture or waterfowl regurgitation, insect frass or animal scat (poop) , bird or animal tracks, an empty or full chrysalis or cocoon, and more. It's an opportunity to unveil the less obvious aspects of the region's wildlife.

Owl pellets consist of undigested materials from the prey that owls consume, including feathers, teeth, fur, and some bones, mixed with the owl's digestive fluids. It's crucial to understand that owl pellets are distinct from scat; they are not processed through the owl's digestive system but rather regurgitated or expelled. Adult owls typically generate around two pellets per day, commonly found beneath their preferred roosting locations.

While the discovery of owl pellets can be fascinating, caution is recommended during handling. Experts suggest wearing gloves and employing protective measures, such as individually wrapping each pellet in aluminum foil. To eliminate potential bacteria, like E. coli and other harmful substances, the foil-wrapped pellets should be subjected to an oven set at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes.

Owl pellets are not limited to owls alone; they are also prevalent among other birds of prey that consume their food whole, such as hawks and eagles. In the context of falconry, the term used for these expelled materials is "casting." Additionally, a variety of bird species, including grebes, herons, cormorants, gulls, terns, kingfishers, crows, jays, swallows, and most shorebirds, produce pellets.

Certain avian species, like Turkey Vultures, possess the ability to regurgitate undigested food as a defensive mechanism when they sense danger or feel threatened. This defensive behavior is also observed in herons, gulls, terns, and kestrels. Understanding these natural behaviors adds to a broader appreciation of the diverse adaptations exhibited by different bird species.

Feathers, too, are a valid entry. Remarkably, photos of feathers have led to the identification of Great Horned Owls, and Ospreys. Even scat photos can be revealing; last year's bobcat scat and this year's deer scat were identified through uploaded images.

A recent submission featured an intriguing green blob, suspected to be a spider egg sac. Including a perspective in photographs aids identifiers in gauging size. Practical advice for photographing peculiar subjects includes using a white card as a backdrop, ensuring sharpness, capturing various plant parts, and incorporating a ruler or recognizable object such as your hand or a coin for scale.

For successful identification, local identifiers recommend maintaining clarity, avoiding obscuring vegetation such as Smooth Brome grass, and providing multiple angles. They stress the importance of capturing details like foliage, blooms, stems, and other features. Learning basic phone editing can enhance submissions, while accessories like a wide-brimmed hat or adjustments to lighting can be handy during photography. These guidelines ensure that submissions not only showcase the beauty of nature but also facilitate accurate identification and documentation.

adapted from Peculiar oddities accepted during City Nature Challenge

Clasping Leaf note for Smooth Blue Aster Symphyotrichum laeve