Attention Citizen Scientists
IU campus map (pdf) Migration is well underway and Sassafras Audubon is eager to lead the way in an urban
conservation, citizen science experiment. We want to begin treating our beautiful IU
campus as an ecological unit of study – to make sense of it from the point of view of the
bird diversity it hosts. We also want your help!The general plan: To look at bird presence and abundance for three different survey
periods: migration (April 15 – May 15), summer breeding (June 1 – 30) and winter
residency (January 1 – 31). We also have agreed upon six areas that we think are most
worth surveying – these are indicated on the campus map. Four of these areas (Beer
Gardens, Jordan Wetlands, Hilltop and the Cross-country course) are particularly
important because the Office of Sustainability has targeted these areas for future
management. For example there are plans to substantially increase the canopy cover in
the Beer Gardens unit – creating an Arboretum of sorts. The data we collect may help
give campus administration a sense of the difference ecological management can make to
species diversity on campus.
Now all we need are some citizen-scientists. Really we’re just asking you to spend some
time in these campus units and tell us what you find. Our hope is to have volunteer
groups survey each of the six campus units twice for each of the survey periods. If your
group is planning to survey the same unit twice over the survey month, we recommend
that you spread your visits out by two weeks or so. (Of course you can survey these units
more than twice if you’d like.)
I went out on my own in late March to get a sense for the time needed to adequately
survey a unit. I walked around the Dunn unit (Unit 2) until I felt comfortable I had
identified most of the species present there. It took exactly an hour, and since it was still
early in the year there wasn’t a great deal of diversity to see. With small groups, it will
probably take less time – though there will likely be more so see in late April, which may
add to the time needed. Also, some units are smaller and more open than others. Just bird
until you’re comfortable that you’ve identified most of what’s there.Unless you’re a student, faculty or staff member at IU weekends may be the best time to
survey birds – for two reasons. First there is less noise on campus. (Things get fairly
loud, fairly early during the week.) Second, parking is less problematic. On the
weekends (Friday 5pm – Sunday 11pm) there are several FREE places to park on
campus. Parking zones D and E are free during this window. Also you can park for free
in the parking garages on Saturdays and Sundays (for more information link to
http://www.parking.indiana.edu/parking_operations/free_park.aspx). In addition
Bloomington residential parking is not enforced after 5pm or on weekends if you would
like to park near, but not on campus.