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    Citizen Science

    Citizen science is a great way for anyone across the community to contribute to real environmental research. 

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    By documenting local wildlife, recording plant observations or tracking changes in a waterway, you can help scientists, researchers and land managers better understand our environment and make more informed decisions to protect and manage it.

    Participating in citizen science means you can:

    • Be part of important scientific research and conservation efforts
    • Understand your local environment better
    • Gain new skills and experience
    • Get involved with and meet like-minded community

    How to get involved

    Taking part is easy, you do not need to be a scientist with specific knowledge or equipment. You can take part by participating in community events, joining local environmental volunteer groups or even by simply snapping a photo on your phone from your own backyard or during a dog walk.

    Join a challenge or local event

    We run a range of citizen science walks and events throughout the year. Glen Eira is part of the Greater Melbourne collaboration where we compete with cities from around the world to make observations of wild plants and animals.

    To keep up to date with our events throughout the year, sign up to our Sustainability E-Newsletter.

    These are some of the events run in Glen Eira, across Australia and worldwide that you can get involved in:

     

    • City Nature Challenge – global challenge running in the last weekend of April, annually. Uses the iNaturalist app.
    • Great Southern BioBlitz – created as an event for the Southern Hemisphere to get out and make observations in Spring, annually. Uses iNaturalist app.
    • Aussie Bird Count – Runs annually in October and uses the Aussie Bird Count app to find as many bird species in your local area as possible.

    Or join a local citizen science project to discover the local flora and fauna of Boyd Park: Boyd Park - Urban Forest Biodiversity Precinct.

    Using iNaturalist

    iNaturalist is a great observation and recording tool for citizen science. You can use the web version or download the free mobile app to record observations.

    You can access iNaturalist’s video tutorials to learn how to take clear photos, use the app tools and make observations on the mobile app and desktop.

    How does it work?

    1. Take a clear photo of any plant, animal or fungi. You can even record audio for birds and frogs.
    2. You can record the species name or if you are unsure, the platform uses technology that can analyse your photo and suggest a potential species or broad category it may be.
    3. Once submitted, your observation can be reviewed by other scientists and experts to confirm or improve your observation.
    4. Once multiple people agree on the species, the observation is upgraded to ‘Research Grade’ status and can be shared on biodiversity databases where researchers use community observations for monitoring and conservation research.

    Other applications to record wildlife and fungi

    There are many great apps that make identifying wildlife and easy.

    • Melbourne Water frog census: Record a frog call and add it to data collection for frog research. It has frog call recordings for easy identification.
    • Birdlife Australia Aussie Birdcount: Walks you through how to identify every Australian bird you see.
    • Museums Victoria Fauna App: Combines animal descriptions with photos, as well as animal calls, distribution maps, conservation status, butterfly flight times, frog calling times and depth information for marine species.
    • FungID App: A free and open phone application that helps to predict and identify mushroom and fungus observations you make. Find fungus names, where they have been locally observed and other information about species.

    Citizen science for kids

    Explore these tools and resources to enjoy citizen science activities with kids at home, in schools, or in early learning settings.

    • Nature Explorer Journal - use this booklet to run nature hunts, exploration activities and wildlife observations.
    • Seek (iNaturalist) — An easy-to-use app that helps students identify plants and animals and explore local biodiversity. Seek was created by iNaturalist and is a kid- and family-fun friendly alternative that requires no user data or registration. For more information, visit iNaturalist’s educator guide.
    • Bug Hunt Data Sheet - We’ve set up pollinator observatories at Rippon Lea Estate in Elsternwick where you can record your wild pollinator sightings. 

    Explore further

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