Can Citizen Science Capture Long-term Ecological Trends?

The citizen science framework is rapidly becoming an important conduit between the general public and the academic community, particularly in the fields of ecology and conservation biology. Initial success using a dedicated... [ view full abstract ]

The citizen science framework is rapidly becoming an important conduit between the general public and the academic community, particularly in the fields of ecology and conservation biology. Initial success using a dedicated website hosted by Marshall University to examine spatial and temporal trends in the 2016 Magicicada Brood V emergence provided the framework to construct a persistent data portal for citizen scientists to participate in a variety of projects that capture a range of ecological phenomena. Punctuated, intense ecological phenomena (e.g., Magicada emergence) generate heightened public awareness, making punctuated occurrences well suited for citizen science participation. However, the utility of citizen science participation in studies attempting to capture long-term ecological trends is less developed. We hypothesize that heightened human emotional response to a wildlife encounter will influence an individual’s desire to participate in citizen science projects. Here, we review several outreach models that include social media platforms to develop a persistent conduit between the public and academia using three cryptic species in need of conservation attention and that span a range of human emotions during an encounter: the eastern hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis), fisher (Pekania pennanti), and timber rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus). The hellbender, which is the largest salamander in North America and is locally celebrated, is a charismatic species that typically elicits a positive response. The fisher is charismatic, but suffers from little public awareness, and thus elicits a neutral response. The timber rattlesnake is a venomous species that suffers from an inflated risk perception, and thus elicits a strong negative emotional response. We expect that an individual’s emotional response during an encounter will drive their desire to share the experience and thus participate in citizen science.