Citizen Science

It's that time of year again where my email box starts showing signs of spring. Citizen Science projects that I've participated in previously are asking for my continued support and data collection.

Citizen Science programs ask lay people to collect data in prescribed manners and return it the lead researcher. This data is used to create a far larger database of information than a single scientist or even research team can collect in a season.

I've collected data on for a number of different projects including Christmas Bird Counts, Great Backyard Bird Counts, Monarch Watch, Herp and Odenate Atlases, FireFly Watch and The Great Sunflower Project.

But is this really science?

In part this question comes from my desire to get more people doing science starting at an early age (see my other blog Messy Fingers). When we collect information on clouds, dog poo, or even honeybees, are we really doing science?

Science at its heart is both a verb and a noun. The collecting or describing of lots of stuff or data is really just science as a noun. Citizens are merely collecting bits of information that are fed to someone else. Citizens are not analyzing the information or designing the experiment. Citizens might see themselves as working as scientists, but they don't generally collaborate with the scientists on the structure of a scientific inquiry or the analysis of the data. Perhaps, a citizen scientist may get to watch a presentation of the project they collected data for but they won't be presenting the information themselves.

So, what part is science?

In my mind, none. But don't for a second think that I don't support citizen science in every crazy, tangled, gorgeous way.

Citizen science gets regular folks thinking about science. Curiosity is fed and conversations started. This can lead some citizens to make deeper inquiries and ask richer questions about how data is used, analyzed, and shared. And that is worth the misconception.

So what am I going to do this summer?  I am continuing my role in Firefly Watch, The Great Sunflower Project, and I am going to join in the Lost Ladybug Project. Honestly who doesn't like to catch fireflies on a warm summer night right before bed?

If you want to add data to a project here are a few clearing houses of projects:
Citizen Science Alliance - astronomy and climate projects
Cornell Bird Lab - well bird related projects and great ones for kids
National Wildlife Federation - nature related projects for kids
wikipedia - lists a variety of projects but can be overwhelming so use this if you know what sort of project you want or can't find something anywhere else

Bugs, bugs, bugs!

Bees are the only bugs I expect to see at the hives so I was quite surprised to see that the hives are a buzz with all kinds of insect activity in addition to bees.

There are a ton of flies everywhere. I they were just flying around, not really hanging out on anything so I am wondering if there is ... well a body of a mouse or something near by. I didn't smell anything other than the musky scent of the bees so any more is just a guess.

I saw my first wasp of the season. She was just basking in the sun and was a solitary wasp, not the nest making kind. Solitary wasps are often fairly gentle. They lay one to a handful of eggs in one spot, then move anther spot and do the same. Without a single nest to defend, these creatures are fairly non-aggressive.

The most fun find was a butterfly! Usually my first butterfly of the season is a Spring Azure.

But not today! Keep in mind I am a beekeeper, not a butterfly keeper. I THINK the butterfly I saw was a Question Mark. They generally fly first in April, but with the nice weather it is possible it is out earlier. It was too fast for me to get a good picture and only held still in positions that were unphotographable!

The photos are from the Butterfly Atlas - a great project from Massachusetts Audubon Society. Check out the entire atlas and the great pictures here.