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Dubai residents discover nature’s beauty without leaving city in wildlife challenge
Residents recorded 504 species, including desert hedgehogs, Arabian sand boas, owls, geckos and sea urchins, as part of the City Nature Challenge
- PUBLISHED: Wed 24 Jun 2026, 11:57 AM
Dubai residents recorded more than 500 species across the city during this year’s City Nature Challenge, documenting wildlife ranging from desert hedgehogs and Arabian sand boas to owls, geckos, butterflies, bees, fish and marine creatures.
But the biggest takeaway was not the number of species found; it was where they were found. The challenge showed that Dubai’s biodiversity is not tucked away only in protected reserves or far-flung desert areas, but is alive in neighbourhoods, parks, beaches and other everyday spaces that residents often walk past without a second look.
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The four-day citizen science initiative, led by Terra, Expo City Dubai, saw 172 participants submit 2,346 observations across Dubai, helping build a clearer picture of the wildlife and plant life that continue to thrive alongside the city’s built environment.
According to the City Nature Challenge Dubai 2026 Impact Report, a total of 504 species were documented this year, representing a 58 per cent increase from 2025. Observations also rose by 69 per cent, from 1,385 last year to 2,346 in 2026.
Among the reptiles and mammals recorded were the Arabian sand boa, Arabian horned viper, desert hedgehog, Arabian red fox, Arabian oryx, sand gazelle, Arabian gazelle, Cape hare, Arabian toad-headed agama, grey monitor and eastern skink, along with several geckos and snakes.
Bird species documented during the challenge included the common hoopoe, little owl, purple sunbird, grey francolin, black-winged stilt, red-wattled lapwing, pharaoh eagle-owl, Indian silverbill, grey heron, little egret, glossy ibis, Bonelli’s eagle, Indian roller and Arabian babbler.
Insects made up the largest share of species recorded, accounting for 36 per cent of the total. These included red dwarf honey bees, Arabian paper wasps, sulphurous jewel beetles, broad scarlet dragonflies, Arabian darkling beetles, western honey bees, plain tiger butterflies, crimson-speckled flunkeys, carpenter bees, grass blue butterflies, cone-headed grasshoppers and several species of mantises, spiders and beetles.
Plants accounted for 21.9 per cent of the recorded species, while birds made up 17.4 per cent. The flora and fungi documented included giant milkweed, desert inkcap, Zygophyllum qatarense, Heliotropium kotschyi, puncture vine, kheep, green amaranth, kapok bush, cheeseweed mallow, common sow-thistle, desert shaggy-mane and arta.
The challenge also captured marine and freshwater biodiversity, with observations including the Indo-Pacific comb star, Oman garra, violet sea urchin, black sea urchin, milkfish, blackspot snapper, Luther’s prawn-goby, orange-spotted trevally, purple estuarine rock crab, pharaoh cuttlefish and upside-down jellyfish.
More than 61 per cent of observations submitted during the challenge reached research-grade status, meaning they can contribute to scientific understanding and biodiversity monitoring. Research-grade observations increased from 471 in 2025 to 1,433 this year, reflecting not only higher participation but also better quality documentation and species identification.
“The increase in participation this year reflects a broader movement we are witnessing across Dubai, with more people actively seeking opportunities to engage with and better understand the ecosystems that exist alongside them,” said Marjan Faraidooni, Chief of Education & Culture at Expo City Dubai.
“Every observation contributes to a wider body of knowledge about the ecosystems that support Dubai, but more importantly, it represents a growing number of people choosing to notice, explore, and connect with nature in their everyday lives.”
First launched globally in 2015, the City Nature Challenge has grown into one of the world’s largest citizen science initiatives, encouraging communities to document local biodiversity and contribute ecological data. Dubai’s participation forms part of a wider effort to better understand and celebrate the UAE’s natural heritage.
As Associate Editor, Sahim Salim helps tell the UAE story like no one else does — and leads a team of reporters that asks the questions to get news and headlines that matter.