NatureWatch NZ as a citizen science tool for pest and weed surveillance in NZ

Abstract

The established mantra for biosecurity is early detection and prompt action. Many new species establish in NZ every year and the earlier a new pest incursion is detected, the more likely it can be eradicated. Doing this well requires a lot of eyes open in the community, plus a method of capturing and identifying observations and promptly getting them to the right people.

NatureWatch NZ is a citizen science tool that does this. It is a rapidly growing website, mobile app, and online community dedicated to identifying and recording any species anywhere in NZ. In the 19 months between our launch in August 2012 and March 2014, 786 people have contributed 47,418 observations of 6,307 taxa. This includes 85,342 photos (many of species with no prior photographs on the internet). Lots of unusual sightings have been uploaded as "ID Please" and subsequently identified by the NatureWatch NZ community, which now includes prominent NZ experts in many groups, from fungi to spiders to ants.

Among these are the first NZ observations of more than 50 species, including the first observation of the recent giant willow aphid incursion and several first records of pests and weeds in NZ regions. There have also been important observations of native species, including one new native moss and the second ever observation of a red listed native mushroom.

NatureWatch NZ is filled with projects set up by its users to target particular places, species, and activities. For example, 61 people have chosen to join the the "Pest Plants (weeds) of NZ" project and added almost 1,500 observations of 375 weed species. Many of those observations began with a request for ID of an unknown plant. Community restoration groups and school groups are increasingly setting up projects on NatureWatch NZ to keep track of the species in their patches. You can create projects in your area to assist with surveillance.

All observations from projects can be streamed live on any external website, and soon observations will be able to be added externally too. NatureWatch NZ projects could therefore operate embedded into your institution's website. Project specific iPhone and Android apps can also be created.

With thousands of observations now flooding into NatureWatch NZ, we now need to ensure that the right observations promptly reach the right people. You can become one of those. NatureWatch NZ can send you email alerts when observations are made of species and areas in which you are interested. More formal regular reporting can be provided to institutions on request.