Citizen science is a way for everyone to contribute in a meaningful way to "professional scientists." It's a great way for students to realize they can make a difference and contribute to the scientific community!
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Backyard Bark Beetles: Backyard Bark Beetles is a citizen science initiative aimed at producing and maintaining a large-scale, long-term bark beetle monitoring program. Our trapping activity is easy, fun, effective, and utilizes items found in the everyday household (2L bottle, hand sanitizer, etc.).
This activity is especially useful as a hands-on activity to complement in-school lessons focused on topics like native/invasive species, forest health, environmental stewardship, etc. and has been used in courses spanning multiple disciplines (e.g., environmental science, entomology, ecology, etc.). Students will create a bark beetle trap, collect beetles for 3 days, and mail the beetles to scientists. Your beetleswill be identified and promptly added to the interactive map, which can be found at bottom of the project's homepage (www.backyardbarkbeetles.org). Get your classroom involved by checking out their website.