Saguaro National Park Neighborhood Camera Project: Citizen Monitoring of Wildlife Cameras to Study Urban Bobcats and Other Wildlife

haynes, Lisa

From 2011 to 2013, we engaged a group of citizen scientists in monitoring wildlife with infrared–triggered wildlife cameras in the Notch Neighborhood (plus a few other households) adjacent to Saguaro National Park—Rincon Mountain District. We distributed cameras and trained the participants in their use and processing the photos. We started with about 15 households, which narrowed down six, which follow the process throughout. The group contributed to the development of the project by deciding the amount of data to be collected and the analysis to be done. We decided to monitor 30 species or groups of species, which may occur in the area, of which 24 were photographed by the cameras. The participants were also able to identify four individual bobcats from their unique markings (spots and stripes on the inside front legs). We created a website (www.CritterClick.org) with which the participants can create a photo gallery and upload one photo of each species or species group, which constitutes a photo–voucher species list for each household. In addition, the participants were presented with a before-and-after wildlife quiz to track their knowledge of wildlife in the urban/wildland interface, and they decidedly improved their knowledge by participating in the project. Finally the project was displayed and presented at the 2011 BioBlitz hosted by Saguaro National Park.