Community Science
Community science (also known as citizen science) is a way for anyone to participate directly in scientific discovery and environmental stewardship. FLT currently has two active community science campaigns: The Biodiversity Monitors Network and Chronolog.
When volunteers contribute observations and photos of wildlife, plants, and landscape changes, they help us monitor long-term trends to support conservation planning and guide our stewardship of FLT properties. Every observation matters and every volunteer contributes to a more resilient, informed, and engaged community.
Biodiversity Monitors Network
The Biodiversity Monitors Network is a community effort to better understand and protect the lands we care for. Through this initiative, volunteers help document the plants, animals, fungi, and insects found on FLT properties using the iNaturalist platform.
Biodiversity is the variety of life in a particular place. A wide range of species is essential for supporting all the ecosystem processes that sustain life on Earth. By participating, you become part of a community working together to learn from the land and care for it. Together, we’re building a living record of the biodiversity on FLT properties and helping these places remain healthy for generations to come.
iNaturalist is a free app and online platform that allows anyone to record observations using a smartphone or camera. Simply upload a photo, note the time and location, and iNaturalist will even make identification suggestions if you aren’t sure about the species. These observations are then verified by a global community of naturalists and scientists, creating reliable datasets for land management, conservation planning, and research.
The Biodiversity Monitors Network is also about connecting people to place, and connecting community members to one another through outdoor exploration. Anyone can participate! Whether you’re a seasoned naturalist or simply curious about what you notice on a walk in the woods, your observations matter! You can also contribute from home by reviewing and verifying other monitors’ submissions.
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Chronolog Photopoint Monitoring
Chronolog is a citizen science platform that invites you to participate in environmental monitoring using fixed photo stations where visitors can take pictures from a set vantage point to create a time-lapse archive.
Photos submitted from these sites help track ecological changes, supports conservation initiatives, and deepens community connection to our shared environment. FLT currently hosts five Chronolog stations: Edge Hill Grasslands, Edge Hill Wetlands, Edge Hill Pond, West Branch Brook Valley, and West Branch Brook.
This video shows the headwaters of the Bear River in FLT’s Edge Hill Conservation Area. Streams and wetlands were constrained, straightened and filled when Edge Hill was a farm and golf course. The changes shown here in just 8 months is exciting, but this restoration project is a long-term effort. We’d love to have your help monitoring the progress!