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io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist

NPM · @PONDLOG/MCP-INATURALIST · SCANNED SEP 22

iNaturalist MCP server. Wildlife observations, species counts, taxa, and places worldwide.

0 this week 82 Trust /100
Trust breakdown (7 categories)

How this component scores in each security and reliability category. Every signal is checked automatically from public evidence about the published package, including repeated runs of it in an isolated sandbox, and we only credit what we can confirm. How we score → Why this is hard to score →

Supply Chain Security98
  • No malware found by supply-chain analysis.Pass
  • No known CVEs affecting this package version or its production dependencies.Pass
  • No install/post-install scripts declared.Pass
  • 31 of 98 dependencies flagged as unhealthy. View diagnostics → Partial
Provenance & Transparency45
Schema Quality & AI Usability69
  • AI-judged instruction clarity (excellent).Pass
  • Context-footprint check failed: tool/resource definitions use about 1952 tokens (~216/item across 9 items; 9 tools + 0 resources), over budget; trim descriptions and params. See how to fix → Fail
  • Usage-examples check failed: none of the tools include examples. See how to fix → Fail
Stability & Change Management97
  • Stability observed for 29 of 30 days with no destabilising changes; credit accrues until the full window elapses.Partial
Tool Coverage95
  • 100% of tools have a non-trivial description (not blank, and not just the tool's name).Pass
  • 86% of tool parameters carry a description.Partial
Tool Safety100
  • No prompt-injection markers were found in the server instructions, tool names or descriptions we captured.Pass
  • We read all 9 captured tool definition(s), and no name or description among them implies an irreversible operation.Pass
  • An AI judge read all 9 captured unit(s) of tool text and found none that tries to manipulate the model reading it.Pass
Capabilities100
  • Implements a supported MCP spec version (2025-11-25); the latest is 2026-07-28.Pass
Install

How do I install the io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist MCP server?

io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist runs locally as an npm package, launched with npx -y @pondlog/mcp-inaturalist. Ready-made configuration for Claude, Cursor, VS Code, Codex and 5 more is on this page, copied from each client's own documentation.

npm · @pondlog/mcp-inaturalist

# add to Claude Code
claude mcp add andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist -- npx -y @pondlog/mcp-inaturalist
// .cursor/mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@pondlog/mcp-inaturalist"
      ]
    }
  }
}
// .vscode/mcp.json
{
  "servers": {
    "andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@pondlog/mcp-inaturalist"
      ]
    }
  }
}
# add to Codex CLI
codex mcp add andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist -- npx -y @pondlog/mcp-inaturalist
// opencode.json
{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "mcp": {
    "andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist": {
      "type": "local",
      "command": [
        "npx",
        "-y",
        "@pondlog/mcp-inaturalist"
      ],
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}
# add to OpenClaw
openclaw mcp add andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist --command npx --arg -y --arg @pondlog/mcp-inaturalist
# ~/.hermes/config.yaml
mcp_servers:
  andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist:
    command: "npx"
    args: ["-y", "@pondlog/mcp-inaturalist"]
// ~/.netclaw/config/netclaw.json
{
  "McpServers": {
    "andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist": {
      "Transport": "stdio",
      "Command": "npx",
      "Arguments": [
        "-y",
        "@pondlog/mcp-inaturalist"
      ]
    }
  }
}
# add to Vellum
assistant mcp add andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist -t stdio -c npx -a -y @pondlog/mcp-inaturalist
// mcp.json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "andrewschristison-pondlog-inaturalist": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@pondlog/mcp-inaturalist"
      ]
    }
  }
}
Changelog

Every change we have recorded for this component, newest first. Security-relevant changes are always shown. ▲ marks a change for the better, ▼ a change for the worse; unmarked changes are neutral.

  • 22 Sept 26 +1

    No change was recorded against any check on this day. Stability & Change Management went from 93 to 97. That category is still filling its 30-day observation window: 28 days of observed history at the previous scan, 29 at this one. The score rises as the window fills, whether or not the server changes.

  • 19 Sept 26 +1

    No change was recorded against any check on this day. Stability & Change Management went from 83 to 87. That category is still filling its 30-day observation window: 25 days of observed history at the previous scan, 26 at this one. The score rises as the window fills, whether or not the server changes.

  • 17 Sept 26 −2
    • Stability: pass → 0.80 functional
  • 16 Sept 26 0
    • Stability: 0.97 → pass security
  • 15 Sept 26 +1

    No change was recorded against any check on this day. Stability & Change Management went from 93 to 97. That category is still filling its 30-day observation window: 28 days of observed history at the previous scan, 29 at this one. The score rises as the window fills, whether or not the server changes.

  • 12 Sept 26 +1

    No change was recorded against any check on this day. Stability & Change Management went from 83 to 87. That category is still filling its 30-day observation window: 25 days of observed history at the previous scan, 26 at this one. The score rises as the window fills, whether or not the server changes.

  • 10 Sept 26 −2
    • Stability: pass → 0.80 functional
  • 9 Sept 26 0
    • Stability: 0.97 → pass security
Diagnostics

Diagnostic detail from the automated scan of this channel: what the scanner observed at each step, so you can see exactly where a check passed or failed. It is informational only and never changes the trust score.

Captured 22 Sept 2026 · Analysed npm/@pondlog/mcp-inaturalist@0.1.3

Provenance No attestation

The registry publishes no build provenance for this version, so there is nothing to verify.

Result No attestation
Ecosystem npm

Background: How many MCP packages publish verified provenance →

Dependencies 98 packages
Packages resolved 98
Stale 31
Tree resolution Complete

Background: SBOMs and build attestations, explained →

MCP tools · 9 exposed · ~1,952 tokens

The tools this component advertises to a client, with an estimated token cost for each. Expand a tool to see its parameters and schema. The per-tool counts are indicative and are not scored directly; the schema's total context footprint is one signal in Schema Quality & AI Usability. A tool's description is untrusted text the model reads on every call, which is what makes this list a security surface and not just an inventory: how tool poisoning works →

Tool Tokens
get_iconic_taxa_summary ~268

Returns a high-level breakdown of recent activity grouped by iconic taxa group (Aves, Amphibia, Mammalia, etc.). For each group, returns the total observation count and the top 5 species by count. Useful for at-a-glance summaries. Aves = birds; Amphibia = frogs, salamanders, newts; Mammalia = mammals; Reptilia = reptiles; Insecta = insects; Arachnida = spiders, scorpions, mites; Mollusca = snails, slugs, clams, octopuses; Plantae = plants; Fungi = fungi, lichens; Actinopterygii = ray-finned fish; Animalia = catch-all animal kingdom (use only when others don't fit); Protozoa, Chromista = microscopic eukaryotes.

NameTypeReqDescription
daysintegerDefault 7 days.
latnumberyesWGS84 latitude in decimal degrees, between -90 and 90. Example: 48.118 for Port Angeles, WA.
lngnumberyesWGS84 longitude in decimal degrees, between -180 and 180. Example: -123.4307 for Port Angeles, WA.
radius_kmnumberDefault 25 km.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

get_nearby_observations ~171

Convenience tool for the most common query: 'what wildlife has been seen near these coordinates recently?' Returns up to 50 observations within `radius_km` over the last `days` days, ordered by observation date. For more control (taxon filters, date ranges, sort order), use `search_observations` instead.

NameTypeReqDescription
daysintegerDefault 7 days.
latnumberyesWGS84 latitude in decimal degrees, between -90 and 90. Example: 48.118 for Port Angeles, WA.
lngnumberyesWGS84 longitude in decimal degrees, between -180 and 180. Example: -123.4307 for Port Angeles, WA.
radius_kmnumberDefault 25 km.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

get_observation ~76

Fetch a single observation by its iNaturalist ID, with full detail: photos, description, identification count, comment count, plus all the fields from the search response. Use after `search_observations` returns a result the caller wants to drill into.

NameTypeReqDescription
idyesiNaturalist observation ID. Numeric or numeric string.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

get_observers ~153

Returns the top observers (most prolific iNaturalist users) for a given geographic + temporal query. Each row: user id, login, display name, observation count, species count. Use this to find local naturalists or to credit who is documenting an area.

NameTypeReqDescription
daysintegerDefault 7 days.
latnumberyesWGS84 latitude in decimal degrees, between -90 and 90. Example: 48.118 for Port Angeles, WA.
lngnumberyesWGS84 longitude in decimal degrees, between -180 and 180. Example: -123.4307 for Port Angeles, WA.
radius_kmnumberDefault 25 km.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

get_species_counts ~369

Returns a count of observations per species for a geographic + temporal query. Each row: taxon name, common name, iconic group, observation count. Use this for 'what species have been seen here' rather than 'show me each individual sighting'. For a higher-level summary grouped by iconic taxa, use `get_iconic_taxa_summary` instead.

NameTypeReqDescription
d1string
d2string
iconic_taxaarrayFilter to one or more iNaturalist iconic-taxa groups. Aves = birds; Amphibia = frogs, salamanders, newts; Mammalia = mammals; Reptilia = reptiles; Insecta = insects; Arachnida = spiders, scorpions, m…
latnumberWGS84 latitude in decimal degrees, between -90 and 90. Example: 48.118 for Port Angeles, WA.
lngnumberWGS84 longitude in decimal degrees, between -180 and 180. Example: -123.4307 for Port Angeles, WA.
pageinteger
per_pageinteger
place_idinteger
radius_kmnumberSearch radius in kilometers. Maximum 500. Default 25. Use smaller values (5-25 km) for hyper-local queries; larger values (50-200 km) for regional surveys.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

get_taxon ~59

Fetch a single taxon by ID, with full detail: ancestry chain, Wikipedia URL, total observations count, default photo. Use after `search_taxa` to drill into a specific match.

NameTypeReqDescription
idyesiNaturalist taxon ID.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

search_observations ~637

Search recent iNaturalist observations with rich filters: geographic radius, taxon, iconic group, date range, and quality grade. Returns up to `per_page` normalized observations (species name, observer, place, observed date, coordinates, URL). Use this when the caller asks for specific kinds of observations ('show me bird sightings near Olympic National Park last month'). For a simple 'what's nearby' query, prefer `get_nearby_observations`. For aggregate counts, prefer `get_species_counts`.

NameTypeReqDescription
d1stringStart date (inclusive), ISO YYYY-MM-DD. Example: 2025-04-01.
d2stringEnd date (inclusive), ISO YYYY-MM-DD. Example: 2025-04-30.
iconic_taxaarrayFilter to one or more iNaturalist iconic-taxa groups. Aves = birds; Amphibia = frogs, salamanders, newts; Mammalia = mammals; Reptilia = reptiles; Insecta = insects; Arachnida = spiders, scorpions, m…
latnumberWGS84 latitude in decimal degrees, between -90 and 90. Example: 48.118 for Port Angeles, WA.
lngnumberWGS84 longitude in decimal degrees, between -180 and 180. Example: -123.4307 for Port Angeles, WA.
order_bystringSort order. 'observed_on' for chronological by sighting date (most useful); 'created_at' for upload order; 'votes' for community-favorited.
pageintegerPage number, 1-indexed. iNaturalist caps page * per_page at 10,000.
per_pageintegerResults per page. Default 30, maximum 200.
place_idintegeriNaturalist place ID. Use `search_places` first to look one up. Filters to a named region rather than lat/lng radius.
quality_gradestringiNaturalist quality grade. 'research' = community-verified IDs (most reliable); 'needs_id' = uploaded but not yet verified; 'casual' = excluded from research-grade pool. Default: no filter (all grade…
radius_kmnumberGeographic search radius in km. Required if `lat`/`lng` are provided. Default 25 when geo-searching. Maximum 500.
taxon_namestringTaxon name to filter by. Accepts common name (e.g. 'frog', 'bald eagle') or scientific name (e.g. 'Pseudacris regilla'). Partial matches work.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

search_places ~106

Look up an iNaturalist 'place' (named region: park, county, country, etc.) by name. Returns up to 10 matches with id, display name, and (when available) coordinates. Use to convert a place name into a `place_id` you can pass to `search_observations` or `get_species_counts`.

NameTypeReqDescription
querystringyesPlace name. Example: 'Olympic National Park', 'Clallam County', 'Port Angeles'.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

search_taxa ~113

Search the iNaturalist taxonomy by name (common or scientific). Returns up to 30 matching taxa with id, scientific name, common name, rank (species/genus/family/etc.), and iconic group. Use this to look up a taxon ID before passing it to other tools, or to confirm a species is in iNat's taxonomy.

NameTypeReqDescription
querystringyesSearch term. Common name ('bald eagle') or scientific name ('Haliaeetus leucocephalus'). Partial matches work.

No output schema declared.

No examples provided.

Common questions

What is the io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist MCP server?

io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist is an MCP server listed in the public MCP registry as io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist. iNaturalist MCP server. Wildlife observations, species counts, taxa, and places worldwide. This page covers its npm package (@pondlog/mcp-inaturalist).

Is the io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist MCP server safe to use?

io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist scores 82 out of 100 on VerifyMCP. We found no known CVEs affecting it as of 22 September 2026. It declares no install or post-install scripts. That is a record of what we were able to check automatically, not an endorsement. The category breakdown on this page shows every signal behind the number, including the ones we could not confirm.

What tools does the io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist MCP server expose?

io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist exposes 9 tools: search_observations, get_observation, get_species_counts, search_taxa, get_taxon, and 4 more. Their descriptions and schemas cost roughly 1,952 tokens of context every time the server is loaded.

Is the io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist MCP server still maintained?

io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist is still listed as active in the MCP registry. We last reached this channel on 22 September 2026. Those dates come from our own scans of the registry and the channel itself, not from anything the publisher announced.

What licence is the io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist MCP server under?

io.github.andrewschristison/pondlog-inaturalist declares the MIT licence, which is OSI-approved. That covers the source only, and says nothing about the cost of any service it calls.