Citizen Science

Local residents assisting park staff with a dragonfly mercury study.

 

Using iNaturalist to Identify and Monitor Invasive Species

 

iNaturalist Intro Video

iNaturalist is a free and powerful phone app that allows users to document the specific timing and location of species seen throughout the entire world. When you document a species while exploring in the New River Gorge National Park & Preserve, the data will help park biologists know the location of species of concern. Regardless if you are a beginner or a master naturalist, everyone can participate in this citizen science project by learning more about the natural world and help conserve park biodiversity throughout the process.

 

Duration:

3 minutes, 23 seconds

Learn how anyone can use iNaturalist to document a species while exploring in the park to help park biologists know the location of species of concern.

 

Using iNaturalist to Help Park Scientists Track Invasive Species

In our previous iNaturalist video, we went over a quick rundown on how to use the iNaturalist app as a citizen scientist and document species occurrences within the national parks. This greatly helps park scientists and resource managers know about the specific timing and location of species of interest to the park. One of the most effective ways to use the iNaturalist app is to document the occurrence of invasive species so that park biologists can develop treatment plans to eradicate them before they have a large negative impact on the park's biodiversity. This video highlights three invasive species we want iNaturalist users to keep their eyes open for the most when hiking in the park and the ways to properly identify each species.

 

Duration:

5 minutes, 52 seconds

This video highlights three invasive species we want iNaturalist users to keep their eyes open for the most when hiking in the park and the ways to properly identify each species.

 

A young citizen scientist assists park staff with collecting dragonfly larvae.

Dragonfly Mercury Project

The Dragonfly Mercury Project engages citizen scientists including students, teachers, and families in collection of juvenile (larval) dragonflies. Larval dragonflies look and live very differently than adults, spending their early life stage in water, especially wetlands or slow moving rivers and streams. The collected dragonflies are sent to USGS laboratories for analysis and interpretation of the results.

Mercury is a toxic pollutant that can harm human health and wildlife health. Mercury often enters parks as air pollution from distant, human-caused sources, like coal-burning power plants. Dragonfly larvae are excellent indicators of mercury risk because they can live for years underwater eating insects and even small fish. Once it is deposited, mercury can build up inside the larvae and give scientists insight into the health of the waters in which they live. Mercury concentration from dragonflies in wetlands is often higher than those in nearby streams because the unique biogeochemical processes in wetlands make mercury more available and retainable by insects and animals that live there. Using parks as classrooms, this study provides data for natural resource managers to protect human and wildlife health.

Three sites were sampled in the New River Gorge in 2020 and 2021 and they represented river, stream, and wetland habitats. The park plans to continue participating in this study for the next few years. See mercury results from our park and parks around the country at The Dragonfly Mercury Project Dashboard (usgs.gov)

For more information about this project visit the NPS Dragonfly Mercury Project page.