Challenges in Engaging Birdwatchers in Bird Monitoring in a Forest Patch: Lessons for Future Citizen Science Projects in Agricultural Landscapes

Abstract

Birdwatchers hold substantial potential as data collectors for research, and in Brazil, the birdwatching community has been growing since the early 2000s. Currently the effects of birds on forest patch restoration in agricultural landscapes is a major focus of avian conservation ecology, but these patches are not frequently visited by birdwatchers in Brazil, hindering the collection of useful bird data. We thus developed a project, Did I see a banded bird!?, which was designed to attract birdwatching volunteers to monitor birds within a forest patch. We explored three motivating factors to attract birdwatchers: (1) we offered an unprecedented opportunity for birdwatchers to record individual birds with colored bands, a challenging activity appealing to birdwatchers' competitive nature; (2) our study area offered a new location with free, easy access and no logistical impediments; and (3) we continuously provided information on the benefits of birdwatching records for science and society to encourage participation. The project was widely announced and we had 302 applicants. However, the barriers faced throughout the project's execution, including limited researcher-volunteer interaction, low security in the patch, and the presence of few species for birdwatchers to see, reduced the motivation and participation of most applicants. Consequently, from a list of 155 highly qualified applicants who lived near the patch and were skilled in forest birding, only 10 visited the patch. Our findings provide important guidelines for researchers planning similar citizen science projects in agricultural landscapes, mainly in countries where citizen science is still not common.

Large Terrestrial Bird Adapting Behavior in an Urbanized Zone

“…All records of Seriemas using human-made structures did not show evidence of negative reaction by campus users. People often tend to become more aware of the surrounding environment when they are close to nature [62] and in recent years in Brazil activities such as birdwatching have become increasingly mainstream (e.g., [42,43]), which suggests that people are becoming more positive toward wildlife in general [63,64]. Indeed, the willingness of many citizens to participate in our study supports this assumption.…”

“…Engaging volunteers for fine monitoring in the field (i.e., wildlife individuals) is not a trivial task [71,72], and if not well planned, the risk of obtaining few records from the focus bird increases [43]. Monitoring based on volunteers totaled approximately 22 h and 27 min of sampling effort in five months, while in a traditional monitoring program of behavior ecology, counting with few trained observers, the same effort is reached only after a longer period (e.g., one year in [32]).…”

“…Red-legged Seriema shows no sexual dimorphism (i.e., plumage is predominantly gray and beak and long legs are reddish in both sexes) or clear differences among individuals, but the species is easily recognizable by any citizen. Because of these characteristics, we decided to mark an individual and use a collaborative citizen science scheme to implement the monitoring of an individual bird (e.g., [43]). On the 5th November 2018, we captured and marked one Seriema fledging with a numbered metallic band provided by the Centre for Bird Monitoring of the Brazilian Institute for Environmental Affairs (CEMAVE/IBAMA).…”

Citizen Science for Conservation: Towards a Cleaner, Greener China

“…Amateur bird watching is an important source of data collection in many citizen science projects (Alexandrino et al, 2019). Within China, the growth of bird watching as a hobby has provided an opportunity for the development of a number of citizen science projects (Ma et al, 2013).…”

Citizen science in ecology: a place for humans in nature

“…Parrish et al showed a large discrepancy between citizen science participation between online-based and outdoor-based projects, modified by demographic factors, such as age, experience, and previous participation. 17 Projects that keep participants up-to-date and provide feedback tend to have higher rates of volunteer retention and participation, 43,53 and building continuity by having volunteers with experience oversee quality control and training can improve retention and participation. 54 No matter how a citizen science project is sustained from year to year, creating such an institutional framework can benefit from collaboration with experts in people management and volunteer engagement, development of a standardized training program, and using a consistent methodology that does not change drastically through time.…”