Regarding the camera trap observations (*repost*)
Recently, I made a post on my personal journal about all these camera trap observations. In retrospect, it makes more sense to put it here since it’s a pretty good overview of what we’re doing and why—so I’ve copied it below!
If you follow my observations or identify in the Atlanta area, you may have noticed a recent uptick in camera trap observations. These are the product of a project at my university which seeks to document (primarily mammalian) biodiversity in an urban landscape.
In Fall 2022, we deployed a set of roughly 20 cameras in collaboration with the Snapshot USA project. We uploaded and identified our observations through that platform but are now cross listing them on iNaturalist to improve portability and allow for the review of identifications.
In Spring 2023, we are continuing this work but with a closer focus on our own campus. We hope to be able to compare biodiversity across seasons and locations and explore a few taxon-specific queries.
For example, Gray Foxes (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) seem to be the only wild canid species present on our campus, but they have not been observed anywhere else within the 285 border as of this post. Keeping records of observations could help inform what a healthy population of foxes might look like on campus while corroborating existing research on the subject of Gray Fox ecology in the Southeastern US.
Feral cats pose a well-documented risk to native birds, but have similarly little research-grade documentation on iNaturalist both locally on our campus and more broadly in the Atlanta area. We know of a feral cat TNR and feeding initiative on our campus, but more work could be probably done to improve population counts and identification of their interactions with other wildlife.
I do want to offer my apologies to anyone who finds the bulk uploads bothersome. If you do not wish to see these observations or receive notifications from me, you may use the “Mark All As Reviewed” feature on the Identify page and/or mute me (see button on my user profile @featherenthusiast). Please feel free to reach out if I can be of any assistance in this process. I want to make it clear that no one is obligated to review these observations, and that my team will eventually get around to identification (though we are only two people so this will take some time). A million thanks to anyone who has taken the time to review one or many of these observations!
Despite the possible annoyance, I hope that the observations generated by this project can provide an accessible snapshot of the state of biodiversity in Atlanta.
Further reading:
Wildlife at Home on Campus
