Blitz the Gap is a Canada-wide bioblitz event to help us fill gaps in our knowledge of biodiversity in Canada. Canada is a large country and hosts tons of amazing biodiversity - which makes it a challenging place to survey. Though we’ve made progress thanks to community science platforms like iNaturalist, we are still lacking data for a whole host of ecological and conservation applications.

To assess at-risk species, track the changes in species’ ranges due to climate change, rapidly detect species losses and invasions, we just need more data - and we need your help!

To participate, click below to join the Blitz the Gap project:

Explore the gaps

This is a map of iNaturalist observations in Canada. The brightest places are the most sampled - we need you to light up the map with your observations!

Challenges

These challenges were designed by graduate students throughout Canada to help guide iNaturalists like you towards places that deserve a little more attention. Remember: even one observation can be enough to make a difference in our understanding of biodiversity change!

Tip

These challenges will automatically track any observations of species or places that are listed in the project. Check them our for more details of where to go and what to look for! The only exception is the Hey birders, don’t look up! challenge: you will need to join the project and add your non-bird observations to it!

Challenge Description iNaturalist Maps & species lists
Missing Canadian Species Thousands of Canadian species have not been recorded on iNaturalist. Can you be the first to find them?
Hey birders, don’t look up! Birders are the ultimate nature observers. This challenge aims to get birders to observe anything else (other than a bird) while they are out birding. Read more
Make a splash! Dive in, and help us blitz the gap in freshwater biodiversity data! Read more
Trailblazers Hey hikers, we need your help to document Canadian biodiversity away from parking lots and trailheads! Read more
Canada’s Most Wanted Hey there! Would you be interested in contributing to conservation management; saving endangered native species, and calling out the bad guys (invasive species) at the same time? Over 2,200 species are currently threatened nationally or within individual provinces and territories. Read more
Made in Canada! This project aims to document Canadian endemics–species that have most of their distributions within Canada Read more
We are the 99% Over half of all observations are found in just 1% of Canada’s area. Let’s go to the other 99%! Read more
Closing the Climate Gap To bridge this gap, we encourage you to visit some areas that represent unique Canadian climates that have yet to be surveyed thoroughly. Read more
Too Hot to Handle Canada’s climate is warming quickly, you can help track how species respond. Read more
Getting Even Some areas have lots of observations of some groups of species and almost none of others – let’s even that out! Read more
More than a Monarch Help us to blitz the gap of all butterfly and moths across Canada! Read more
Find new Key Biodiversity Areas for conservation We need your help to identify priority areas for conservation! Read more
Revisit the past Some species haven’t been spotted in Canada since before the iPad, are they still here?! Read more
Seaweeds of Canada Ahoy! Beachcombers, beachgoers, and beach bums rejoice! Have we got a challenge for you! All you need to do is take photos of the seaweeds you find and upload them to iNaturalist to learn all about their crazy forms, functions, and life history. Read more

Books, butterflies, and blooms

(next year!)

 Team up with your local public library to photograph plants, animals, fungi and more! Beginners welcome. Help us survey biodiversity across this vast and beautiful country. Read more