Citizen science projects allow non-professional scientists to contribute to scientific research. This document discusses several citizen science projects in South Africa, including iBol which collects DNA barcodes from species, and the South African Bird Atlas Projects which involve volunteers collecting bird observation data. It explains how these projects generate valuable data to further scientific understanding of biodiversity while also providing a fun, educational experience for volunteers.
1. Conservation:
the value of Citizen Science
Bewaringsprojekte:
Jan Alleman se bydrae
Renier Balt Sept 2013
2. Citizen science
• Amateur or non-professional scientists
• “Public participation in scientific research”
• Sometimes referred to as “crowd-sourcing”
• Who was known as the “gentleman naturalist”?
3. Born into wealthy family
A life of wealth, comfort and
country sports
No formal training in natural sciences
Paid his own way on the Beagle,
no remuneration
Contracted his own resources for lab
assistance
Shied away from studies in medicine
and theology
Strongly attracted by various natural
sciences and geology projects
The first citizen scientist?
4. Examples of Citizen Science Projects
– Seti@home
– The great sunflower project (collecting data on
pollinators, the number and types of plant pollinators,
especially for sunflowers)
– Animal demography and atlasing (SABAP1 to SABAP2)
(and many other atlasing projects)
– Virtual Museums
• VMUS (ADU)
• i-spot (UK-based)
5. Why Citizen Science grows in importance
• Cost drivers
– Cost of data-gathering prohibitive:
• person hour cost
• S&T cost (fuel prices)
• Technology drivers
– Availability of information (via internet, devices)
– Connectivity near-ubiquitous
– Other technologies (GPS, photography, etc)
• Social, Societal, Psychological driver
– Enjoyable, fun, enriching
– Sharing is the “in” thing
– Continuous learning
– Demography
6. Graphical presentation: Formal Science
vs
Crowd-sourcing / Citizen Science**
Formal projects wholly
dependent on
Scientific
Institutions
Demo’s or Pilot
Projects (small scale)
The Future: more
opportunities,
increased CS
involvement,
adherence to more
complex protocols
Crowdsourcing,
Presently the domain
of Citizen Science
Knowledgeandcapacity
Reach and presence
**
Note: this graphic is for presentation
and explanatory use, not borrowed from
Scientific analysis or papers
7. Formal projects wholly
dependent on
Scientific
Institutions
Demo’s or Pilot
Projects (small scale)
The Future: more
opportunities,
increased CS
involvement
Crowdsourcing,
Presently the domain
of Citizen Science
Knowledgeandsystemcapacity
Reach and presence
Many lower-skilled
volunteers,
everywhere all the
time
Small number of professional
scientists, limited in reach and
observation capacity
Graphical presentation:
Formal Science vs. Citizen Science
8. Some projects notionally depicted on
this graphic…
Formal Science
domain
Demos, pilots, gap-
fillers
The Future:
more CS
opportunities
Citizen Science
domain
Knowledgeandcapacity
Reach and presence
24
1
Project examples
1. iBol project
2. SABAP1
3. SABAP2
4. MyBirdPatch
5. Ornithological
Observations
3
5
9. Growing importance of
Crowd-sourcing and Citizen Science
Formal Science
domain
Demos, pilots, gap-
fillers
The Future: CS
will take on
protocols with
increased
complexity
Citizen Science
domain
Knowledgeandcapacity
Reach and presence
10. Two projects presented (1)
• iBol - International Barcode of Life (and the acdb – African Centre for
DNA Barcoding) championed by Univ of Johannesburg
• SABAP1 and SABAP2 – South African Bird Atlas Project
championed by the ADU, Univ of Cape Town
(1) With acknowledgement to prof Michelle vd Bank,
Klipbokkop Management and prof Les Underhill
for information provided and participation in projects
11. The iBol project – in South Africa
• Largest biodiversity genomics initiative ever undertaken
• After five years - DNA barcode records exist for more than 50,000 species
• Official launch of iBOL was July 2010
• More than 25 countries involved
• Phase 1 operating budget of $150 million
• By 2015, 5 million specimens, 500,000 species into the interactive
• BOLD, (Barcode of Life Data System)
• DNA barcode reference library for all of Earth’s eukaryotes (i.e. cells with
nucleus, unlike bacteria)
• RSA programme champion is prof Michelle vd Bank
• Enviro Outreach project sponsored by Toyota (and others) at the forefront
with species collection in southern Africa
12.
13. Preparation of the PLANT sample:
• a) Herbarium voucher:
– At least two specimens of the same plant must be prepared.
– One will be kept at the University of Johannesburg Herbarium, and
– the second deposited to a main herbarium in the region where the plant was
collected.
• b) Few leaves stored in silica gel:
– The silica gel is a hygroscopic material that is used to remove all moisture from
plant material and conserve the DNA in the best condition as possible for
further molecular work
– Silica gel can be obtained from chemical companies, contact to skin must be
avoided.
• c) Collecting information:
– a) Date of collection,
– b) the Botanical family of the plant collected,
– c) the GPS position/precise locality and
– d) collector information.
– More information is beneficial to each collection
29. 2012 outreach
Focus on alien and invasive species
• South Africa has an extremely rich biodiversity
– ca. 20 456 species in the region
– richest temperate flora in the world
• 2 577 taxa threatened with regional or global extinction
– agriculture,
– urbanization,
– encroachment of alien invasive species and
– habitat loss.
• 550 naturalized plant species are known to be contributing
to the widespread transformation of once pristine habitats
– Acacia saligna, Hakea sericea
– natural vegetation almost lost.
– Southern African Plant Invader Atlas.
30.
31.
32.
33. Outreach 2013
Northern Cape biodiversity Hotspot
• A total of more than 600 species were collected
• New species:
– Trachyandra (Gamsberg)
– Eragrostis sarmentosa collected at Raap en Skraap
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39. New find - Trachyandra
This tiny bulb has an interesting
history linked to its naming and
classification. It was first
discovered 7 years ago, without
pictures or samples to support
the finding. It could not be
recognised as a new species;
since that date no other
examples could be found.
This confirms the authenticity
of the new species and this will
be added to the 100 or more
new species found annually in
South Africa
40.
41.
42. Summary of present status - acdb
• http://www.acdb.co.za/
• Focus Areas (such as Kruger National Park) have
been completely sampled
• Globally the objectives for iBol 2015 are maintained
43. Where does iBol fit in our graphic…
Formal Science
Demos, pilots, gap-
fillers
The Future:
more CS
opportunities
Citizen Science
Knowledgeandcapacity
Reach and presence
1 Project examples
1. iBol project
46. SABAP2
South African Bird Atlas Project 2
- SABAP2, the most important bird conservation project in the region
- SABAP1 data collection took place mainly between 1987 and 1991
- SABAP2 started in July 2007 and is ongoing
SABAP2 is a partnership
between the Animal
Demography Unit at the
University of Cape Town,
BirdLife South Africa and the
South African National
Biodiversity Institute (SANBI)
47. Where do SABAP1 and SABAP2 fit on
our graphic?
Formal Science
domain
Demos, pilots, gap-
fillers
The Future:
more CS
opportunities
Citizen Science
domain
Knowledgeandcapacity
Reach and presence
2
Project examples
2. SABAP1
3. SABAP2
3
48. In a nutshell…
• Survey Protocol
– Survey “pentad” area for 2 hours minimum
– Intensive birding in BBD (Birding Big Day) fashion
– Visit different habitats in the pentad over time
• Data recordal
– List species in sequence of observation (can be linked
statistically to abundance)
– Various technologies available (P&P, voice recorder,
Lynx Birdticks)
• Data submission
– Register as observer
– As soon as possible
– Data Management System to upload
http://sabap2.adu.org.za/docs/sabap2_atlasing_for_dummies.pdf
67. The map is mostly RED and
ORANGE. Black Storks are being
recorded far less frequently in
SABAP2 than in SABAP1. The
reason is unclear. This was a change
that no one suspected until this
range-change map was produced
68.
69. The map is mostly ORANGE. There seem
to be fewer Hamerkops during SABAP2
than there were in SABAP1. Once again,
the reason is unclear. This was also a
change that no one suspected until this
range-change map was produced
70.
71. This is an unusual range change map. In
the northeast it is mostly RED and
ORANGE. It seems to get increasingly
GREENER towards the Western Cape,
and there seems to be a bit of range
expansion northwards in the NW corner
of the Western Cape. The grasslands of
the Highveld were the former range of
the Blue Crane, and from this it seems to
be disappearing. But the new core of the
distribution is in the wheat-growing
regions of the Swartland and Overberg in
the Western Cape. It is critically
dependent on the current agricultural
regime in these regions
72.
73. The map is mostly GREEN! Although
there has not been much range
expansion, there has been a big increase
in the abundance of Egyptian Geese over
the SABAP2 region since SABAP1. This
is probably because this species has
adapted to agriculture and to living in
towns and cities. There are also lots
more Egyptian Geese on the shoreline
than in former times
74.
75. The map is has lots of RED and
ORANGE, but also some GREEN and
BLUE. But the overall consensus is that
the Secretarybird is not doing well at
present. It is being recorded less
frequently in SABAP2 than it was during
SABAP1. The reasons are unclear. This
was a change that no one really
suspected until this range-change map
was produced
76.
77. The map is mostly BLUE and GREEN.
Common Mynas have expanded their range
massively since SABAP1. But it is a surprise
that they now appear to be less common in
KwaZulu-Natal than during SABAP1. This
ORANGE region was the core of their range
at that time. The range of this species in
expanding rapidly, and the ongoing SABAP2
project is keeping track of this in a
remarkable way. It is even expanding into
the Kruger National Park
78. SABAP2 alerts us that
something is not going right
for the Black-shouldered Kite
79. The six bulbuls show the biggest increases of any family. The likely explanation
is the process of “thickening” of savanna habitats through bush encroachment,
abandonment of marginal farmland, and changes in land management
80. Why it is fun, learning, fulfilling…
• ORF’s
• Travel
• Access
• Support
• Friendship
• Contribution
• Birding “with a purpose”
81. Acknowledgements
Prof Michelle van der Bank
Molecular Systematics Laboratory
University of Johannesburg, APK Campus
Department of Botany and Plant Biotechnology
Prof Les Underhill, Doug Harebottle and
Michael Brooks
Animal Demography Unit
Department of Zoology
University of Cape Town
