The Citizen Scientist Within
- Friends of Bachman Lake
- 2 hours ago
- 2 min read
Ever wonder if your afternoon stroll around the lake could actually change the world? Welcome to citizen science, essentially "science by non-scientists" where regular community members help professional researchers study the planet. It matters because it allows scientists to collect massive amounts of data over large areas that a small team of experts could never cover alone. These observations allow scientists to track water and soil quality across a wide space, track species migrations as birds and monarchs move over huge distances, or discover harmful invasive species. Some citizen scientists have even helped discover formerly thought extinct species.
Beyond helping the experts, it’s a major win for us too; spending hands-on time in nature as a volunteer has been shown to reduce stress, improve your mood, and foster a deeper sense of stewardship for our local environment.
When you're out exploring the Bachman Greenbelt or nearby creeks, citizen science can take the form of a biological "check-up". You could become a "water watcher" with the Texas Stream Team, where you're trained to test the water's pH and dissolved oxygen to ensure our aquatic habitats are thriving. If you prefer a closer look at the muddy banks, you can help perform a "reading of a catchment" by identifying aquatic "water bugs" like dragonflies and mayflies, which act as living indicators of a creek's health. Even tracking the first seasonal blooms of wildflowers through platforms like Nature’s Notebook provides vital data on how our local climate is changing over time. A very popular tool is iNaturalist, which is a simple app you can download to your smartphone, allowing you to catalog the various plants and animals you encounter as you explore. The tool can help identify the species of what you saw, and other experts can confirm the accuracy, providing valuable data for biologists.
Think of yourself as part of a global "neighborhood watch" for the planet, as citizen scientists are often the first to detect dangerous biological invaders. Your simple photo of a "weird bug" on an app like iNaturalist could trigger a scientific alarm that helps ecologists protect an entire ecosystem from a new threat. A ten year old boy in Fort Worth was the first to discover the Emerald Ash Borer presence in Tarrant County, a damaging invasive insect, which prompted local biologists to take action.
Getting started is as easy as downloading an app or joining a local organization like Audubon Society, the Texas Master Naturalists, or the Sierra Club. Or you can go it alone just using apps on your phone. You can use eBird to log the feathered friends you see at the lake or FrogWatchUSA to record the calls of toads in our wetlands. By placing your individual "piece" into the massive puzzle of scientific research, you’re helping the full image of our changing world finally come into focus.
