Citizen Science Success!!!

Hi Steve, Good to hear from you. Yes, this is the last year for the ol' A-Frame: I tried to enjoy it as much as possible this winter (200% of average snowpack! - literally had to dig down to access the front door in March!), and we are putting it to good use this summer with the field crew that is doing aspen browsing/release assessments in the Park and water sampling on the Yellowstone in Paradise Valley. Going to miss that place - that's one reason why I made sure to include it in our otter crew group photo. But looking forward to our future digs! I don't think Anicka's Olympus is a film camera (as you said, tough to find a developer these days, especially since she and her husband live in Cooke City) - I think it is just slick retro styling. I will check with her though and let you know if it is. All the best, Patrick

Hi Angie, We will be working on the analysis this summer and fall. Unfortunately, our sample size ended up being pretty small and it might be hard to make any strong conclusions from it. We need more data, and trying to collect it all in one day in one big sweep just might not work: for example, the team on our highest elevation transect did not record any otter sign (and that team included an experienced mountain guide/former wilderness ranger from the area as well as a PhD ecologist), and yet the previous week one of those guys happened to be skiing in the exact same area and did see tracks! But fortunately, (1) we learned a lot about how we might run this project different next time, (2) our volunteers did great work, had fun, and want to come back and volunteer again, and (3) we DID get some data, proving the concept and demonstrating the ability of citizen scientists to get out there and do the work well. Also, one of those sets of tracks WAS substantially smaller than a track right next to it, and therefore may represent a juvenile, which would be an exciting find! I will be doing some statistical analyses on track sizes to determine if (a) the measurements of that track were significantly different than adult tracks, and (b) the measurements of that track were significantly different that juvenile tracks. So in short, I think this project has just begun! But what we did accomplish this go around still is notable, and will make a great video (after all, getting perfect results in natural sciences almost never happens, and communicating that to the general public is important) and possibly even make a peer-reviewed journal article too. Thanks again for your support!