# iNaturalist Observations Scraper (`parseforge/inaturalist-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes iNaturalist wildlife observations by taxon, place, or date. Returns each observation as a flat row with species, location, quality grade, and photos. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/inaturalist-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Developer tools, Other
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 0 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 1 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $8.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner.jpg)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### iNaturalist Observations Scraper

**Scrape iNaturalist observations by taxon, place, or date, up to a million per run.** Each observation comes with its species, location, quality grade, and photos. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

iNaturalist's official API needs an app registration, OAuth, and rate-limits you. This reads the public observation feeds directly, filtered by taxon name, quality grade, place ID, or date range, and returns each match in one fixed schema.

| Who uses it | What they scrape iNaturalist for |
|---|---|
| Ecologists | Monitoring species distribution and abundance over time |
| Data scientists | Building machine learning datasets for species identification |
| Conservation NGOs | Tracking endangered species sightings for reports |
| Educators | Gathering real-world biodiversity data for classroom projects |

### What it does

This Actor collects iNaturalist wildlife observations by taxon, place, or date, and returns each one as a flat row.

- 🔍 **Taxon filter:** search by common or scientific name, like whale, butterfly, or eagle.
- 📍 **Place filter:** restrict to a country, state, or park using iNaturalist place IDs.
- 📅 **Date range:** collect observations from a specific period with start and end dates.
- 🏆 **Quality grade:** choose Research Grade, Needs ID, or Casual observations.
- 📸 **Photos only:** optionally return only observations that include photos.
- 🔢 **Sort order:** order results by creation date, observation date, or votes.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

### What you can do with iNaturalist data

**📊 Monitor species trends.**

An ecologist runs the scraper weekly for a taxon and place to track observation counts and detect population changes.

**🤖 Build ML training data.**

A data scientist collects thousands of photo observations for a species to train an image classification model.

**🗺️ Map biodiversity hotspots.**

A GIS analyst pulls observations for a region and imports coordinates into mapping software to visualize species distribution.

**📚 Support conservation reports.**

An NGO gathers Research Grade observations of endangered species to cite in grant proposals and impact reports.

### Why choose this scraper

|  | What you get |
|---|---|
| **No API key** | Scrape public iNaturalist data without registering an app or dealing with OAuth. |
| **Up to 1M rows** | Collect large observation datasets in a single run for research or ML training. |
| **Fixed schema** | Every observation returns the same flat structure, ready for analysis or export. |
| **Flexible filters** | Combine taxon, place, date, quality grade, and photo filters to narrow results. |

### How it compares

This actor focuses on core observation filters and returns a clean flat schema, while competitors may offer additional filters like project or bounding box, or different pricing models.

| Feature | ParseForge | iNaturalist Observations Scraper | iNaturalist Observations Scraper - Biodiversity Data | iNaturalist Observations Scraper - Species, Photos & GPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Filter by taxon name | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Filter by place ID | Yes | Yes | Not listed | Not listed |
| Filter by date range | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not listed |
| Filter by quality grade | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |
| Filter by project | Not listed | Yes | Not listed | Not listed |
| Filter by bounding box or radius | Not listed | Yes | Not listed | Not listed |
| Observer metadata | Not listed | Not listed | Yes | Not listed |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor from taxon names, place IDs, and date ranges, alone or together, and filters run as each observation is read so only matches reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10,
  "taxonName": "whale",
  "qualityGrade": "research"
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
  "maxItems": 200,
  "taxonName": "whale",
  "qualityGrade": "research"
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.0085 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $0.85 |
| 1,000 results | $8.50 |
| 10,000 results | $85.00 |

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

### Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. [Upgrade your Apify plan](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [iNaturalist Observations Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/inaturalist-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click **Start**.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the **Dataset** tab.

Run it programmatically through the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to iNaturalist through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=parseforge/inaturalist-scraper"
```

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting no results?**

Check your filters. The taxon name may be misspelled, the place ID may be invalid, or the date range may have no observations. Try broadening your filters or removing some of them.

**Why are my results limited to fewer observations than I requested?**

iNaturalist may not have enough observations matching your filters. Try removing some filters or expanding the date range.

**How do I find the correct place ID?**

Go to iNaturalist.org, search for the place you want, and look at the URL. The number after /places/ is the place ID. For example, /places/1 is the United States.

**Why are some observations missing photos even though I selected 'Has Photos'?**

The 'Has Photos' filter only includes observations that have at least one photo. If an observation has no photos, it will be excluded. If you still see missing photos, check if the photo URL is accessible.

**Can I filter by a specific species?**

Yes, enter the common or scientific name in the 'Taxon Name' field. For example, 'Monarch Butterfly' or 'Danaus plexippus'.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Do I need an iNaturalist API key? | No. This scraper reads public observation data directly, so no registration or authentication is required. |
| What filters can I apply? | You can filter by taxon name, quality grade, place ID, start and end dates, and whether the observation has photos. You can also sort by creation date, observation date, or votes. |
| How many observations can I get in one run? | You can set the maximum number of observations up to 1,000,000 per run. The scraper will stop once it reaches that limit. |
| What is a quality grade? | iNaturalist assigns each observation a quality grade: Research Grade (community-verified), Needs ID (awaiting identification), or Casual (does not meet criteria for the other grades). You can filter by any of these. |
| Can I filter by location? | Yes, you can provide an iNaturalist place ID, such as 1 for the United States or 6 for Australia. You can find place IDs on the iNaturalist website. |
| What date format should I use? | Use YYYY-MM-DD format for both start and end dates, for example 2024-01-01. |
| Can I get only observations with photos? | Yes, set the 'Has Photos' option to true to return only observations that include at least one photo. |
| What export formats are supported? | You can export the results as CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML directly from the Apify platform. |
| Is this scraper legal? | This scraper only accesses publicly available data on iNaturalist. You should review iNaturalist's terms of service and respect their usage guidelines for your specific use case. |
| Can I schedule this scraper to run automatically? | Yes, you can set up a schedule in Apify to run the scraper at regular intervals, such as daily or weekly. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **Need help?** Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ **Disclaimer.** This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by iNaturalist, LLC. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.

# Actor input Schema

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

How many observations to collect per run.

## `taxonName` (type: `string`):

Filter observations by taxon name (e.g., whale, butterfly, eagle).

## `qualityGrade` (type: `string`):

Filter by observation quality grade.

## `placeId` (type: `integer`):

Filter by iNaturalist place ID (e.g. 1 for United States, 6 for Australia).

## `startDate` (type: `string`):

Filter observations from this date (format: YYYY-MM-DD).

## `endDate` (type: `string`):

Filter observations up to this date (format: YYYY-MM-DD).

## `hasPhotos` (type: `boolean`):

Only return observations that have photos.

## `orderBy` (type: `string`):

Sort results by this field.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10,
  "taxonName": "whale",
  "qualityGrade": "research",
  "hasPhotos": false,
  "orderBy": "created_at"
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `overview` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "maxItems": 10,
    "taxonName": "whale",
    "qualityGrade": "research"
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/inaturalist-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "maxItems": 10,
    "taxonName": "whale",
    "qualityGrade": "research",
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/inaturalist-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "maxItems": 10,
  "taxonName": "whale",
  "qualityGrade": "research"
}' |
apify call parseforge/inaturalist-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/inaturalist-scraper"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/QbzltFqeD26dmhsm9/builds/quRZBC0HUdENUVfOf/openapi.json