Hanna Grokenberger
SW11:
Summary and Commentary on Delaney et al. (2008)
In Delaney et al. (2008), a thorough description of two invasive crabs, Carcinus maenas and Heigrapsus sanguineus, helped introduce the problem of exotic crabs in coastal US states. Citizen scientists were utilized in this study in order to gain a wide collection of invasive and native crabs in marine systems throughout the seven states. The paper stressed the need for marine system monitoring through volunteers, and uses this study to validate and highlight the accuracy and benefits of a “large-scale marine invasive species monitoring network.”
Certain variables, such as the volunteers’ age, their educational background, the size of the group, and the size of the crab selection, play into the accuracy of collecting data. Before the collection process began, volunteers, ranging form kindergarteners to Ph.D scholars participated in a training session that evaluated their degree of accuracy for sampling techniques. Delaney et al. (2008) then conducted systematic surveys across 52 sites, recording species, gender, and carapace width for each crab. The crabs were then collected for further analysis to validate the volunteers’ descriptions.
Delaney et al. (2008) concluded that educational background of volunteers was a significant indicator of citizen scientists’ abilities to identify crabs. Meanwhile, the analysis did not reveal that group size or crab size were reliable predictors of a volunteer’s ability to correctly record crab species. Therefore, data collected from citizen scientists who exceeded 95% accuracy (those with a 7th grade education or higher) and their collected data was used for the purposes of the paper. The study revealed densities and distribution of C. maenas and H. sanguineus throughout the tested coastal states.
The study also explains shortcomings of citizen science in the future of monitoring marine systems. For instance, the pilot study experienced volunteers who found certain aspects of the collection process overly difficult or tedious, and therefore failed to report some of the needed information. And yet, Delaney et al. (2008) states that any data collected is useful in some way to help progress future studies. Another challenge in monitoring systems using citizen science relies in the lack of funding for a universal database that is user friendly. In order for a large-scale marine invasive species monitoring network to expand and remain sustainable and up to date, investment by both state and national supervision could be an important factor.
Delaney, D.G., Sperling, C.D., Adams, C.S., Leung, B. 2008. Marine invasive species: validation of citizen science and implications for national monitoring networks. Biological Invasions 10:117-128.
The study conducted by Delaney et al. (2008) used citizen scientists to collect and identify two species of invasive crabs, Carcinus maenas and Hemigrapsus sanguineus, along the east coast, and at the same time studied the effectiveness of these citizens’ abilities to correctly identify the crab species. The need to monitor for the presence and spread of marine invasive species, or any invasive species for that matter, is great because early detection allows for rapid action to be taken against the invader. This has been proven to be the most cost-effective way of dealing with an exotic species.
In this particular study, citizen scientists were counting and identifying two species of invasive crabs. It was found that a higher level of education increased the accuracy of identification, though even third-grade students were able to make correct identifications with about 80% accuracy. It was more difficult for citizens of all education levels to correctly identify the gender of the crabs. The crabs were found to be present in all the sites from northern New Jersey to Maine with differing percentages of each type of crab at each site. H. sanguineus was found to more common at lower latitudes while C. maenas dominated at higher latitudes.
Delany et al. (2008) notes that the use of citizen scientists and volunteer-based monitoring has been used by many programs in Europe, but is not yet common in the United States. Citizen science has great value, both to the citizens who
can have a worthwhile educational experience, and to the scientists conducting the study who have a vast pool of free labor. Delaney et al. (2008) discussed the feasibility of establishing a large, national network that could be accessed by citizen scientists and used to collect data on a number of species across a wide range of locations. Most of the factors standing in the way of this are technological, though increased availability of global mapping systems such as Google Earth could make it possible. They also found that it helps to have supervision for citizen scientists which can help increase the accuracy of their observations and identifications.
Delaney, D.G., Sperling, C.D., Adams, C.S., Leung, B. 2008. Marine invasive species: validation of citizen science and implications for national monitoring networks. Biological Invasions 10:117-128.
Delaney et al. (2008) studied the use of citizen scientists in a project that identified crab species, Carcinus maenas, Hemigrapsus sanguineus and several native species, and determined their gender in intertidal zones ranging from New Jersey to Maine. Acquiring such large amounts of data is typically difficult for scientists because of monetary and personnel limitations, and it leaves massive holes in the crucial information needed to study invasive species.
However, citizen science provides a solution to this issue; Delaney et al. (2008) claim that the scientists gain personnel to collect data from volunteers and the volunteers get exposure to unique hands-on experiences. A common criticism of citizen science is the difficulty of validating data collected by volunteers. Delaney et al. (2008) show that the data collected in their study was mostly accurate, particularly as level of education increased (80% of seventh graders and 95% of second year college students could identify crab gender). Perfection is not needed for such a broad range study, and with more training, citizen scientists could get the job done much more efficiently than scientists alone.
The power of volunteers is needed, and although there are some potential issues like their level of patience, the benefits of citizen science far outweigh the costs and risks.
Delaney, David G., C.D. Sperling, C.S. Adams, and B. Leung. 2008. Marine invasive species: validation of citizen science and implications for national monitoring networks. Biological Invasions 10: 117-128.
Delaney et. al. 2008 shows us the potential power that citizen science has. Typically, monitoring the geographical distribution of invasive species would be a nearly impossible task. A small group of professional scientists can only count crabs so fast. It is very likely that by the time a small group of scientists are done counting, the crab population has already changed. Delaney et. al. 2008 showed that by using citizen science, such a task is possible to accomplish.
Volunteers were trained to identify the invasive crabs, the crabs’ genders, and record all these data into a database. These volunteers were able to quite accurately report the distribution of the invasive crab population. It was found during the study that education directly correlated with the accuracy one was able to distinguish apart different crab species and genders. It was noted that seventh graders were able to report the correct gender of the crabs 80% of the time while students in college were able to correctly identify genders 95% of the time. The accuracy of the citizen scientists is not perfect and it was noted that some people did not mark down the size of the crabs as it was reported to be too tedious. However, because there are so many people constantly monitoring the crab distribution, the sheer amount of information recorded compensates for the slight loss in accuracy.
This kind of study showed that citizen science is a powerful tool when used correctly. While the results were not 100% accurate, doing something like finding a population distribution does not require such accuracy. Citizen science is possibly the best tool for scientists to use whenever an overwhelming amount of information needs to be gathered, information that does not need to be 100% perfect.
Delaney, David G., C.D. Sperling, C.S. Adams, and B. Leung. 2008. Marine invasive species: validation of citizen science and implications for national monitoring networks. Biological Invasions 10:117-128.
In Australia, the cane toad has been recognized as an invasive species for nearly eight decades. Stopping the spread of the cane toad has been unsuccessful, however, new ways of at least controlling the toad, such as citizen science, are aiding in its removal. The only volunteer group that is concerned with the cane toad’s control and ultimate destruction is the Kimberley Toad Busters, which were established in 2005. The members apart of this organization go through training and are educated on the cane toad and are led by leaders. The toads are measured, weighed, and their sex is determined. The Kimberley Toad Busters are just as focused on cane toads as they are establishing knowledge about them in the community. This is a prime example of citizen science and how it can be effective in getting a firmer grip on an invasive species.
elaney, Sperling, Adams, Leung et al. (2008) is a study done on the efficiency of citizen science. The paper starts off describing an experiment where 1,000 volunteers assessed the invasion of native crabs. The volunteers ranged in age from third grade to second year college education students. Also, the education level of volunteers had a direct correlation with their ability, which revealed that 80 percent of seventh grade students were able to differentiate the gender of crabs while students with two years of a university education exceeded 95 percent in identifying the crab species. This was used to create a large-scale database of the distribution and abundance of the native and invasive crabs (2008). With the appropriate education level, citizen science can be a valuable tool for scientists.
While Europe has realized the value of citizen science with incorporation of volunteers in environmental monitoring, North America has not utilized citizen science as strongly. However a prominent program that has utilized citizen science is the National Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird Counts, a program that collects data on the migratory patterns of certain birds. Scientists have found citizen science to be very helpful within the program because it increases the personnel aiding to the experiment and also has been beneficial in gaining samples and data (2008). The scientific community believes otherwise according to Delaney. This is apparent because of the lack of validity of data and research compiled by citizen scientists.
Hopefully the scientific community will take citizen science data into account because it has been shown to contribute to reduction in cost of experiments and have been useful in previous environmental assessments (Greenwood 1994,2003).
1. Delaney, David G., C.D. Sperling, C.S. Adams, and B. Leung. 2008. Marine invasive species: validation of citizen science and implications for national monitoring networks. Biological Invasions 10: 117-128.
2. Greenwood JJD (2003) Trust the wildlife volunteers. Nature
368:490
Citizen Science has been playing an increasingly more important role in modern research studies that involve keeping track of large populations of different species. Delaney et al. (2008) illustrates the importance of implementing citizen science methods to amass large collections of data for various studies of invasive species. Delaney et al. (2008) highlights that volunteer monitoring is a potential answer to supplying the resources necessary to construct vast and accurate databases for native and invasive species. This article also points out that citizen science provides a solution in which every participating party benefits. The scientists in charge of the study gain valuable information that could not be obtained with their given limited resources and the public volunteers gain educational hands on experiences in identifying various species. Delaney et al. (2008) mentions the National Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird counts as an example of citizen science at its best. This society has been generating data for over 100 years about patterns and the distribution of North American Birds. The study that Delaney et al. (2008) focuses on specifically involves the assessment of the presence of invasive and native crabs within the coastal states of the United-States from New Jersey to Maine. Volunteers of various age groups were asked to differentiate between species of crabs in order to identify native and invasive crab species. The data that was collected was then utilized to construct a large database of the distribution and population of the different native and invasive crab species for the east coastal region of the United-States. Based off their study, Delaney et al. (2008) concluded that citizen science is a very important tool for amassing large scale databases without having to rely heavily on cost and resources.
Delaney, D.G., C.D. Sperling, C.S. Adams, and B. Leung. 2006. Marine invasive species: validation of citizen science and implications for national monitoring networks. Biological Invasions 10: 117-128.
The invasive Hermigrapsus sanguineus and Carcinus maenashave been attacking the Northeast United States over the past few years. These crab species are displacing the native species from the northeastern waters. Delaney et. al. (2006) decided to put together a study that tested the distribution of invasive species along the northeast coast along with the concentration of both species in certain areas. In addition to researching the crabs’ distribution, Delaney and his colleagues also tested and studied the effectiveness of citizen science.
Because their research entailed data from over fifty different water bodies, the use of citizen science was practically needed to cover the wide range of research. Over one thousand participants volunteered to help Delaney and his colleagues record data from the northeastern waters. The volunteers were in charge of observing and recording the amount of each of the crab species in their assigned sections.
It may seem like the use of volunteers to collect and record data may be unreliable, but Delaney et. al. (2006) made sure to double check their volunteers’ work. After examining the data, it was discovered that the citizen science research was actually extremely accurate. The volunteers were able to correctly identify the species of crabs around 95 percent of the time. More surprisingly, these volunteers were able to also correctly distinguish the gender of each species found at a rate of 95 percent. Some of these volunteers were only middle school students, and the most effective research was conducted by students with only two years of education at the university level.
In my opinion, citizen science was essential for this study. Not only did it save time and money with its convenience, but it was also very accurate based on Delaney et. al.’s (2006) research. This effectiveness could probably be translated to other studies that involve citizen science. This belief comes from the fact that with some proper training, citizen scientists can conduct research with extremely high accuracy. Personally, I feel as if citizen science should be used in most research projects because of this favorable research. The use of citizen scientists could reduce the amount of money and time spent on research which instead could be put to better use.
Delaney, D.G., C.D. Sperling, C.S. Adams, and B. Leung. 2006. Marine invasive species: validation of citizen science and implications for national monitoring networks. Biological Invasions 10: 117-128.
A study by Delaney et al. (2008) demonstrates that citizen scientists may be the solution to outdated and incomplete databases about invasive species. Because of the lack of funding and personnel, invasive species research has not been sufficient in providing necessary comprehensive and up-to-date data. The scientific community, however, has been reluctant in accepting the validity of data collected by citizen scientists. This study by Delaney et al (2008) sought to test how accurate and feasible a large-scale invasive species-monitoring network of citizen scientists could be.
Delaney et al. (2008) had groups of varying ages (3-78), education levels (pre-Kindergarten to Ph.D) and group sizes (1-10 people) collect data about invasive crabs on New England shorelines. Researchers then retested the data to determine the validity. The experiment showed that education level was the most important determinant in whether or not the data was consistently accurate. Although 2 years of university education was necessary to identify the gender of a crab to 95% accuracy, 7th graders could identify whether the crab was invasive with 95% accuracy.
Delaney et al. (2008) proved that citizen scientists, with sufficient training and education, could provide accurate enough data to be trusted in the scientific community. Although finding enough support to help citizen science flourish and sustain may stand in the way of citizen science, Delaney et al. (2008) demonstrated that there could be a partial solution to insufficient funds and personnel. Although limited to relatively simple research, citizen scientists could drastically help with things such as early detection of invasive species.
Delaney, David G, CD Sperling, CS Adams, and B Leung. 2008. Marine invasive species: validation of citizen science and implications for national monitoring networks. Biological Invasions 10:117-128.
To prepare for our class discussion on Wednesday, please do the following:
- Read Delaney et al. 2008
- As a form of “pre-writing” for citizen science paper, please write on the course blog:
- A summary/ brief commentary of Delaney et al. 2008 OR
- A summary/ brief commentary of a similar study. Some examples cited by Delaney et al. (2008) include Darwall and Dulvy 1996, Fore et al. 2001, Boudreau and Yan 2004 OR
- A paragraph or two on how citizen science is used for your lit. review topic (similar to the informal writing I asked you to do for last week)
- Comment on a classmate’s post.