How Parks Canada uses citizen science and iNaturalist to engage the public in Science and Conservation
Gia Paola Species Conservation Support Officer Parks Canada Agency
1 March 4th, 2020 Overview
1. Citizen Science & Parks Canada a. BioBlitz b. BioBox c. Other Citizen Science Activities d. iNaturalist.ca
2. Invasive species example - Grasslands National Park
3. Challenges & Moving Forward
4. Questions
2 1. Citizen Science & Parks Canada
● Collaboration between External Relations and Visitor Experience Directorate and Protected Areas Establishment and Conservation Directorate
● Citizen science activities provide: ○ Opportunities for the public to be actively involved in science and conservation ○ Meaningful data for Parks Canada ○ Expansion of opportunities for meaningful connections with Parks Canada places
3 a. BioBlitz
● What is a BioBlitz? ○ An event that provides opportunity for experts and volunteers to count and record the species that live in a specific place
● 2017 National BioBlitz Initiative ○ Canada 150th celebration
● 2018 and beyond ○ Transitioned from national to a regional, field level organized activities ○ Examples: ■ Norman Sanson Citizen Science / Digital BioBlitz project at Banff National Park ■ Cape Merry BioBlitz at Prince of Wales Fort National Historic Site ■ Mini BioBlitz in Coteau-du-Lac National Historic Site
4 b. BioBox
● Formerly known as “Bioblitz in a Box”
● Participants race against the timer to identify as many species in the Box as they can
● It can be adjusted based on number of participants, age group, and region
● An effective tool to engage and create awareness about being able to connect with nature from any setting
5 c. Other Citizen Science Activities
● 2018-2019 approximately 80 Citizen Science projects held in 20 Parks Canada places
● Examples: ○ Green Crab Monitoring at Pacific Rim National Park Reserve & Gone Crabbin’ at Kejimkujik National Park Seaside ○ Bring back the boreal at Cape Breton Highlands National Park ○ Pika Monitoring at Banff National Park ○ Swim with Salmon at Fundy National Park ○ Fossil fever at Grasslands National Park
6 d. iNaturalist.ca
● Free bilingual species observation app
● Parks Canada projects and species guides for all national parks
● Self-directed citizen science
● Banff BioInventory through iNaturalist ○ approximately 500 observers and 4,000 observations
7 2. Invasive species example - Grasslands National Park of Canada ● Insufficient plant location data has been an ongoing challenge for the Park
● In the early stages of using iNaturalist for invasive plant observations, 2020 is a pilot year
● Target visitor segment will be those already interested in plant ID, who may already be using iNaturalist
● Next steps: ○ Developing a poster to communicate the project ○ Exploring the development of an invasive plants guide on iNaturalist ○ Invasive plants-themed interpretive hike
8 3. Challenges & Moving Forward
● Challenges: ○ Capacity ○ Growing demand ○ Perceptions ○ Expectations ○ Linkage between citizen science and data collection
● Moving Forward ○ Collaborating with external partners ○ Increased integration ○ Inclusiveness - no science background, no problem! ○ Continued support and promotion of citizen science data collection ○ Increased communication on results of volunteer efforts
9 Thank you Questions?
Parks Canada Citizen Science Generic email: [email protected]
Gia Paola [email protected] Species Conservation Support Officer | Agente de soutien à la conservation des espèces SARA Governance | Gouvernance de la Loi sur les espèces en peril (LEP) 10 Parks Canada | Parcs Canada