Community science in Michigan: What's happening and how you can get involved
By Linnea Rowse, Michigan Audubon and Ava Landgraf, Detroit Audubon
Community science programs provide essential information to biologists working to better understand wildlife’s fluctuating populations and contribute to conservation efforts. Biologists and other scientists simply cannot be everywhere all the time – they depend on nature lovers and backyard biologists like you to report what you see!
Birds are especially easy to observe because they are far more conspicuous than mammals, reptiles or other fauna. Other animals rarely announce themselves with repeated calls or practiced songs the way birds do, and very few can be identified by species just from listening to a call or song. Birds are also out and about throughout the day like humans, while many other animals hide during the day and come out at night.
Spring is a great season to begin participating in a community science project. Below are a few opportunities in Michigan.
Safe Passage Great Lakes (March 15 through May 31)
Each year nearly 1 billion birds die from bird/building collisions in the U.S. During migration, birds face many challenges traveling through large cities, from lit-up skyscrapers that confuse their navigation systems, to glass buildings that they can’t see. Community science volunteers monitor buildings in Michigan’s urban areas that may pose a danger to migrating birds. The data collected is then used to start conversations with building owners and city officials about making the city a more bird-friendly community.
Monitoring buildings for spring migration will begin March 15 and continue until May 31. If you are interested in becoming part of this community science project in Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor, please contact Heidi Trudell and Alice Elliott at Washtenawsafepassage@gmail.com.
To participate in Detroit, Troy, Southfield, Royal Oak or anywhere else in the seven-county region of southeastern Michigan, please contact Ava Landgraf at alandgraf@detroitaudubon.org.
To participate in the Lansing area or in Grand Rapids, please contact Linnea Rowse at lrowse@michiganaudubon.org.
Climate Watch (May 15 – June 15)
Can you identify a white-breasted nuthatch or eastern bluebird by sight or sound? Would you like to learn how? If so, Climate Watch wants you! This innovative community science project, coordinated by Audubon, aims to improve scientists’ understanding of how birds are responding to climate change. Learn more about Climate Watch. To participate, find a Climate Watch coordinator near you.
Detroit Bird City (once weekly in June)
Detroit Audubon and Detroit City General Services and Parks and Recreation Department partnered to create the Detroit Bird City project, which will restore five underutilized, city-owned parks into intentional meadows. These meadows will provide essential habitat for migrating songbirds, grassland birds and pollinators. To gauge how the restoration efforts impact the wildlife biodiversity within these parks, volunteers are needed for pre- and post-restoration bird surveys or point counts. Little effort is required – point counts are conducted just once a week in June and take just seven minutes each! With a little bit of bird identification training, anyone can perform these bird counts. If you are interested in volunteering for the Detroit Bird City project, please contact Ava Landgraf at alandgraf@detroitaudubon.org.
Questions about how you can get involved? Email MI Birds at mibirds@audubon.org.
MI Birds is a public outreach and education program created by Audubon Great Lakes and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Birders and hunters share similar conservation values, but rarely cross paths. MI Birds aims to bridge the divide, and deepen all Michiganders’ engagement in the understanding, care and stewardship of public lands that are important for birds and local communities.
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/Note to editors: Accompanying photos are available below for download. Caption and credit information follows.
Indigo Bunting: Indigo buntings were observed at several of Detroit Bird City’s pilot parks, along with Baltimore orioles, house wrens and northern flickers. Photo by Sunil Gopalan/Audubon Photography Awards.
Volunteers: Harvey Farber, left, and Freddy Palma, volunteers with the North Shore Audubon Society, search for birds while conducting a Climate Watch survey. Photo by Luke Franke, courtesy of Audubon Climate Watch./
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