Inside Iowa State: Iowa State University

December 13, 2002

Volunteers keep tabs on Iowa's wildlife

Jim Colbert does his NatureMapping at the natural prairie near the Ames High School. Photo by Bob Elbert.

Throughout the state, people are keeping tabs on Iowa's wildlife -- carefully recording what, when and where.

They are part of Extension's Iowa NatureMapping program, a two-fold program that combines collecting data with educating the state's citizens.

"It's a good trade-off," said program coordinator Jason O'Brien, who holds about one training session a month to teach people how to collect data about wildlife. The training sessions, often coordinated through county conservation offices, include how to identify wildlife, read maps and monitor. Monitors are asked to visit an area over a period of time so multiple records are collected.

"We've trained more than 500 volunteers from all walks of life throughout the state," O'Brien said. Of those, more than 100 have continued with the program and actively collect and report data.

"We get two groups at the training sessions," O'Brien noted. "One group comes to learn more about wildlife. The other group already knows it wants to participate in NatureMapping."

Both groups are more than welcome, O'Brien added.

Scavenger hunt
One volunteer who is active is associate botany professor James Colbert, who does his data collecting at the natural prairie area near the Ames High School.

Like many of the volunteers, Colbert already was involved in outdoor activities when he volunteered for the program. The program has changed his routines very little.

"My wife and I go there (to the natural prairie area) and record what we see instead of just saying, 'Gee, isn't that nice.' I think the program is great. It's a good way to motivate people," Colbert said.

Colbert, who advises the Biology, Zoology and Genetics Club, has incorporated NatureMapping activities into field trips with the students.

"It gets the students involved in recording when and where they see wildlife. The students think it's fun, like a scavenger hunt," he said. "NatureMapping makes them more observant. They are more apt to ask if something is different than what they've already seen. It motivates them to be observant."

Which is pretty much the point of the program, O'Brien said.

"We're trying to encourage people to be interested in wildlife," O'Brien said. "They already go outdoors, so we're asking them to collect some information on the wildlife while they're there -- like when they're feeding the birds. It's 'citizen science' -- citizens doing real science."

The NatureMapping program has proved popular with schools, O'Brien noted.

"Teachers will incorporate NatureMapping into their lesson plans," he said. "Teachers frequently are looking for outdoor activities and field trips. The program involves the kids with real science."

Hawk sighting
Once O'Brien receives the data from the volunteers, he reviews it for accuracy, and then sends much of it to the Department of Natural Resources. The DNR uses the information to determine management needs for Iowa's wildlife, as well as check for rare finds, such as the Sandhill Cranes several volunteers spotted in Chickasaw County this spring. This was the first recorded observation of a possible nesting pair of Sandhill Cranes in that Iowa county since records have been kept, O'Brien noted.

This year, the NatureMapping program was funded by a grant from the Resource Enhancement and Protection-Conservation Education Program. However, that agency's funding has been cut and O'Brien is preparing grant proposals for future funding.

The NatureMapping program is based on a similar program in Washington state and was begun in 1999 at Iowa State by James Pease, extension wildlife specialist in the natural resource ecology and management department.

Most of the volunteers record Iowa's bird life, but amphibians, reptiles and mammals also are included. "Eventually, we might include dragonflies and butterflies," O'Brien said, "and there's even interest in mapping plants."

"It's a really great program," Colbert said. "It provides an opportunity and motivation to really engage with the biological organisms we share Iowa with. The information collected may turn out to be very important."

Colbert added his most exciting find so far has been a Cooper's hawk he spotted last spring. "Others may have seen them, but this was my first time. My wife and I were sitting quietly (in the natural prairie area) and the hawk came close enough that we were able to identify it."

For more information about the program, contact O'Brien (4-6440) or Pease (4-7429), or visit the NatureMapping Web site ( http://www.extension.iastate.edu/naturemapping).