How to Find Pokémon Nests: A Guide to Spawning Grounds

Pokémon GO players are always seeking out nests – spawn points where specific Pokémon frequently appear. Locating nests allows you to easily farm Candy to power up rare Pokémon or catch high IV specimens for battle or trading. This comprehensive guide will teach you how nests work and the best practices for locating active nests in your area.

What Are Nest Spawns?

In Pokémon GO, a nest is an area where a particular Pokémon species has an elevated spawn rate. Nests act as consistent spawn points for specific Pokémon, causing them to frequently pop up in the same general area.

Some key things to know about nests:

• Nests increase the spawn rate of one particular Pokémon species within a defined area
• The Pokémon species tied to a nest rotates every two weeks
• Nests can be located in parks, nature reserves, public spaces, and other suitable habitat
• Not all Pokémon species have nests – for example, regional exclusives and most legendaries don’t nest
• Some Pokémon with gender differences, like Nidoran, will have both genders sharing the same nest

Why Hunt for Nests?

Locating nests can be hugely beneficial for a few key reasons:

• Power Up Rare Pokémon – Nests allow you to farm Candy for rare, powerful, or high IV Pokémon. This makes powering them up easier.
• Complete Your Pokédex – By regularly visiting nests, you can efficiently catch Pokémon needed to fill in missing slots in your Pokédex.
• Get Trade Bait – Catching desirable Pokémon from nests provides excellent trading fodder to swap with friends.
• Catch High IV Pokémon – Since nest spawns generate a cluster of the same Pokémon, you can rapidly check for specimens with ideal IVs for battle leagues or raids.

In short, locating helpful nests should be part of every Pokémon GO player’s hunting strategy.

How Do Nests Work?

The mechanics behind how nests operate are a little complex. Here is a simplified overview:

• Migration Timer – The Pokémon species tied to a nest changes every two weeks, keeping the game dynamic.
• Predefined Habitat – Nests are predefined spawn points, typically tied to public parks and nature reserves.
• Spawn Rate Boost – A nest significantly boosts the spawn rate of a single Pokémon species within the set habitat area.

So in essence, nests act as temporary habitats for specific Pokémon with boosted spawn rates to allow players to easily farm those species for a limited time.

Locating Active Nests

Now that you understand the basics of nests, let’s discuss the best practices for actually locating good, active nests in your local area:

• Leverage Online Nest Atlases – The easiest way to find nests is to use unofficial fan-updated nest atlases like The Silph Road Nest Atlas or Google’s Nest Map. These aggregate player reports to track active nests globally.
• Search Suitable Habitat Areas – Focus your search on public parks, nature reserves, green spaces, and other habitats likely to host nests. Stay away from private residences.
• Scan with Radar Apps – Use apps like Poke Radar to thoroughly scan an area for spawns. Take note of clusters of the same Pokémon.
• Talk to Other Players – Connect with local players through Facebook groups and Discord servers, which often have nest reports. Groups like Silph Road can help.
• Verify the Nest – Make sure a potential nest has an actual elevated spawn rate of a particular species before promoting inaccurate nests. Verify over multiple visits.

What Are Good Nesting Species?

While nests rotate every migration, there are some particularly desirable Pokémon worth hunting at nests whenever they pop up. Here are some to prioritize:

• Starters – Nests for Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, and other starters help you collect Candy to fully evolve them.
• Pseudo-Legendaries – These rare powerful Pokémon like Dratini, Bagon, Beldum, and Gible don’t normally appear often outside of events, so nests are useful.
• Regional Exclusives – Species limited to certain geographic regions rarely spawn, so nests can help players lacking regionals register them.
• Evolve Candidates – Nests for Abra, Machop, Geodude, Rhyhorn, and others provide Candy to evolve for the Pokédex.
• Meta-Relevant – Competitively viable Pokémon like Swinub, Larvitar, and Ralts become easier to power up when nesting.

Make a habit of tracking nest migrations and investigating any nests tied to notable or rare Pokémon species as they appear.

Nest Hunting Strategies

Once you’ve located an active nest, there are some effective strategies to actually farm the spawns efficiently:

• Use Pinap Berries – Double your Candy haul from each catch with Pinap Berries to accelerate gaining power-up resources.
• Try Excellent Curved Throws – Land bonus XP throws to boost your catch rate and gain more XP during your farming.
• Activate Glacial/Mossy Lure – Lure Modules that attract more Pokémon can further increase your nest catches if placed strategically.
• Travel in Circles – Moving in loops allows you to re-catch Pokémon as they reappear while searching the whole area.
• Schedule Multiple Visits – Make multiple trips to a high-value nest during its two-week-long rotation to maximize Candy.

With some effort and these nest hunting fundamentals, you’ll be well on your way to easily snagging rare Pokémon.

Locating Nest Hotspots

If you don’t have any valuable nests currently active in your hometown, consider taking a trip to known Pokémon GO nest hotspots. These public areas consistently host useful nests you can take advantage of:

• Santa Monica Pier (Los Angeles)
• Central Park (New York City)
• Grant Park (Chicago)
• Stanley Park (Vancouver)
• Yoyogi Park (Tokyo)
• Ueno Park (Tokyo)
• Sydney Botanical Gardens
• Sheldon Park (London)

Plan a dedicated PoGO hunting trip to major parks in big cities around the world to catch regionals and stock up on rare Candy whenever they have appealing nesting species in rotation.

Conclusion

Finding and leveraging Pokémon nests is one of the most effective ways to catch elusive species, farm Candy for evolutions and power-ups, fill your Pokédex, build an army of battle Pokémon, and much more. Use online nest atlases, habitat searches, spawn scanning tools, local groups, and nest verification to pinpoint helpful spawning grounds in your area. Then use Pinaps, excellent throws, and lures to maximize your farming efficiency.