Skip to content
Life Observer

How It Works

From “I just saw that!” to a life list you'll keep for years.

  1. 1

    Create your free account

    Sign in to see your life list and the latest hot observations from other members.

  2. 2

    Add a sighting

    Seen something? Add an observation: common and scientific name, where (address or GPS), when, what you saw and a photo.

  3. 3

    Choose to share

    Tick Share to add the sighting to the community's shared observations — or keep it just for your life list.

  4. 4

    Explore and connect

    Cross-reference species near a location, check sightings in your area, climb the Top Observers board and join the Sightings Forum.

What goes into an observation

Common name
e.g. Northern Cardinal
Scientific name
Genus and species
Location
Address or place name
GPS coordinates
Pinpoint where you saw it
Date & time
When the observation happened
Description
Behavior, habitat, numbers…
Pictures
Add your photos
Share
Make it visible to the community

Cross-referencing, explained

Choose a species, a location (such as a ZIP code) and a distance. Life Observer finds every observation of that species that other members have shared within that area — handy for planning where to look next.

Want to be among the first observers?

Request early access