Citizen Scientists Step In When Professionals Can’t

Andrew Badje knows he can’t rely on professional naturalists to protect Wisconsin’s turtles. He needs the help of people across the state to help him figure out where turtles are in danger and how to look after them.

“Citizens outnumber DNR [Department of Natural Resources] employees, and they’re spread throughout the entire state,” Badge said. “They can cover more ground than DNR employees can.”

Snapping turtles like this one are common in Peninsula State Park, according to park naturalist Kathleen Harris. Photo by Chelsi Hornbaker, courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Badje is a conservation biologist for the DNR, and heads the state’s turtle conservation program.

Turtles lay their eggs in upland sandy areas. They often have to cross roads and risk getting hit by cars to get good egg-laying environment. By documenting how many turtles cross roads and where they get hit, Badje hopes he can make those migrations safer.

Badje recently launched a citizen science program where volunteers can report when and where they see turtles.

Citizen science is a method of gathering research using volunteers. Getting help from volunteers cuts costs for projects with tight budgets and engages the non-science community in scientific research.

There are lots of opportunities for citizen scientists to help with projects in Door County, from noting when plants bud to monitoring the size and strength bat colonies.

“I think it’s important to educate the public on what’s going on in their backyard and to understand where they fit in the community,” said Marne Kaeske, stewardship coordinator at the Ridges Sanctuary. “It’s great to be able to count on a person who’s passionately invested in natural resources, to be able to obtain some data and the things that we’re not able to get on our own just because of the amount of time and money that’s required.”

Ridges volunteers collect information on local streams as part of a statewide surface monitoring program. The data on insect activity, water quality and flow helps scientists around Wisconsin check for changes in surface water, and helps Kaeske prioritize conservation projects and get grant money.

“It’s like a canary in the coal mine concept, as far as picking up the components that establish trends and signs of deterioration,” said volunteer Marilyn Hansotia.

If you see a turtle like this one, a Western Painted Turtle, go online to the Wisconsin Turtle Conservation Program website to fill out a survey about where and when you saw it. Your contribution could help protect turtle migration routes. Photo by Gary M. Stolz, courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Hansotia, a former nurse but scientist at heart, monitors the stream at Three Springs for the Ridges’ stream monitoring project. She also tracks the bat population in the barn at Three Springs.

“Part of what I do as a citizen scientist is to know statistically if, when and how things are changing,” Hansotia said. “It adds a measure of legitimacy to the changes that are occurring to our environment when you can document numbers and trends.”

Last year Crossroads at Big Creek volunteers walked the Lake Michigan beach looking for dead birds, and University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh students use the Crossroads lab to test water samples volunteers collect at Door County beaches.

“From astronomy to microbiology, people are out in the field doing what professionals don’t have time or computer space to do,” said Coggin Heeringa, Crossroads director.

Every three years, Crossroads volunteers do a plant inventory of the property. They monitor when plants bloom and survey the property for invasive species to track how the environment and climate changes over time.

Beyond getting outside and learning new data collection techniques, volunteers get to be part of projects that can point to environmental trends around the county, state and the world.

“I also feel the satisfaction of being able to have a hands-on approach to the natural world and make some small contribution to the health of our environment,” Hansotia said.