Citizen Science Programs

These are volunteer projects you can do on your own. Several examples are listed below.

Monitor Invasive Plants

This is a statewide program coordinated by Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center.  Anyone can participate through a “satellite” group.  If we have enough chapter members who want to participate, we can form our own satellite and get the necessary training.  Or individuals can take the training that is offered around the state and then report through another satellite group. Dave Redden is currently the only chapter member who has received the training and is reporting for this area.   He reports his data through the Heart of Texas chapter in Waco.

  • Japanese privet (wax leaf ligustrum)
  • Giant reed
  • Japanese honeysuckle
  • Chinaberry
  • Johnson grass
  • Chinese tallow
  • Nandina
  • Bermudagrass
  • English ivy
  • Hydrilla (water thyme)

Notify Dave Redden if you find examples of these species in the wild, as opposed to part of the landscaping of a private home. He will take a GPS reading and a photograph and send them to the state organization’s database.  With more volunteers in our area, we can choose our own species to monitor and have an expert verify them for us.

Community Collaborative Rain, Snow and Hail Network –Rain Data Collection

This is a “citizen scientist” program called CoCoRaHs for reporting precipitation data.  This allows those of us who like to track rain to do something with the data.  See: http://www.cocorahs.org/ for the full story.  The data is helpful in improving weather models, and it provides more data on the extent of flooding or droughts than
the data from “official” weather stations.

The program requires that we buy a special rain gauge. The CoCoRaHs program has a weather instrument supplier which will sell them for around $22 plus S&H. If you want to participate you can join at the web site and either order your own gauge, or let me know and I will order several, saving a little on the S&H cost.  There is an online training program, which tells you how to read a rain gauge in 100ths of an inch and how to place the gauge so that it collects the rain with minimal error.  It does require routine data entry, but it only takes a few seconds to enter the data.
Dave Redden

Go to: CoCoRaHS and click on Washington County or some other county of interest.

Hummingbird Roundup

Help identify the diverse hummingbirds of Texas and contribute to our knowledge of these unique American birds and the challenges facing their populations in Texas. Contact Hummingbird Roundup at Texas Parks and Wildlife.

Backyard Bird Feeder Watch

Similar to Hummingbird Roundup, but for songbirds and sponsored by Cornell University.

Project FeederWatch welcomes participants of all ages and skill levels, from scout troops and retirees to classrooms and nature center visitors. To learn more and to sign up, visit www.feederwatch.org or call the Lab toll-free at (800) 843-2473. In return for the $15 fee ($12 for Lab members) participants receive the FeederWatcher’s Handbook, an identification poster of the most common feeder birds in their area, a calendar, complete instructions, and the FeederWatch annual report, Winter Bird Highlights.

Cornell NestWatch Program

Participants in this program monitor bird nests and report data to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. You will record information about nest site location, habitat, species, and number of eggs, young, and fledglings. This project is sponsored by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and the National Science Foundation.  For more information about participating in this program, click on the heading.