In the summer of 2017, undergraduate students from across the country participated in a NSF funded research project focused on citizen science pollinator studies in the GYE using innovative technological field methods. Long-term, this project hopes to address multiple questions regarding the validity of citizen science projects, such as: can students and citizen scientists detect pollinator decline within national parks? Are citizen science applications effective in creating accurate pollinator observations? Can technology, such as GoPro cameras, enhance data collection methods in a non-invasive way? Finally, using humans, technology, and citizen science applications, which is most useful in tracking pollinator species diversity? Students spent eight weeks photographing a diverse group of species using iNaturalist, a citizen science mobile application, to assist in data collection and identification for the GYE databases. Studies were completed on eleven transects throughout the GYE in order to measure a diverse range of species based on the park’s elevational gradients.
Results/Conclusions
Preliminary data using citizen science and technology field methods was completed by the student team in 2017, leading to over 1000 pollinator observations and over 300 species identified. Besides students collecting and identifying pollinators, curators within iNaturalist have also followed this project, thereby improving the accuracy of these records for future use. From a technology perspective, GoPro cameras were most effective in tracking pollinator functional groups such as flies, but further research and field design will need to occur in order to make this data more reputable. Field collection for this project will continue in summer 2018 so that species diversity can be verified over time. This presentation will highlight how students were able to successfully implement citizen science and technology into field research projects so that long-term, the GYE has a better idea about the scope of diversity present within the parks.