Two wonderful citizen science projects are being offered this summer through SciStarter and they’re a great way to help butterflies while also doing science. These projects are free to take part in and can be done in your own park, town or back yard.
The Monarch Larva Monitoring Project was developed by researchers at the University of Minnesota. The project enlists citizen scientists to collect long-term data on larval monarch populations and milkweed habitat in order to better understand how and why monarch populations vary in time and space.
The project says:
In addition to contributing to an understanding of monarch biology, you’ll gain hands-on experience in scientific research. Through this experience, we hope that your appreciation and understanding of monarchs, monarch habitat, and the scientific process are enhanced.
As volunteers, your family can participate in two ways:
- You can commit to regularly monitoring a specific patch of milkweed by conducting weekly monarch and milkweed surveys, measuring per plant densities of monarch eggs and larvae. You’ll also be able to participate in more detailed optional activities, such as measuring parasitism rates and milkweed quality.
- You can submit anecdotal observations.
Your family’s data will aid in conserving monarchs and their threatened migratory phenomenon, and will advance scientists’ understanding of butterfly ecology in general.
In the second project, Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA) is seeking individuals to submit their sightings of butterflies, moths, and caterpillars of all species.
BAMONA is a user-friendly web site and database that shares butterfly and moth species information with the public via dynamic maps, checklists, and species pages. Data are updated in real time and come from a variety of sources, including citizen scientists.
Families can get involved by documenting butterflies and moths in your neighborhoods and submitting photographs. You can also explore the website to see what other butterflies might be in your area, see how the populations vary across the country and much more.
Visit SciStarter to find lots more great citizen science projects for your homeschool, too. Some don’t even require leaving your home or computer.
This article originally appeared on examiner.com.