Her previous work has included a Mirzayan Science and Technology Graduate Policy Fellowship at the National Academy of Sciences (2012), co-development of several of the final science policy questions with (2012), consulting on the development of the Seattle Science Festival EXPO day (2012), contributing photographer for JF Derry’s book “Darwin in Scotland” (2010) and outreach projects to numerous to count. Hough is a freelance science advocate and communicator. Tags: biodiversity, butterfly, Camera, climate change, environment, moth About the Authorĭr. Not content to stay in one place for very long, she might be found exploring, often behind the lens of her Nikon D80, plotting her next epic adventure, or training for the next half marathon.Ĭategories: Biology, Citizen Science, Climate & Weather, Ecology & Environment, Insects, Nature & Outdoors Naturally curious, it is hard to tear Melinda away from science. She holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh for research into how antibiotics kill bacteria, was a policy fellow at the National Academy of Sciences, and is a published photographer. Hough is a freelance science advocate and communicator dedicated to sharing the inspiring stories of life science and helping the general public explore their world. Image courtesy Wendy Caldwell (Museum of Natural History, Los Angeles).ĭr Melinda T. Image courtesy Tony Maro (BAMONA submission). Why not grab a camera and enjoy the summer sun while waiting for a butterfly to flutter by? They are thinking like scientists – making predictions about what they are going to find in the coming weeks. According to Lila Hi ggins, Manager of Citizen Science for the museum, “Citizen scientist are already getting so much out of their experience. New projects are sprouting up including the Monarch Larva Monitoring Project. At the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, they are mapping local species in order to inform planting in the pollinator garden. This is very unusual as the Cecropia is found in the east of the Rocky Mountains.”Ĭitizen scientists benefit from their involvement as well. Lotts goes on to explain, “We get a lot of data requests from scientists looking at butterflies as indicators of climate change… in 20, in California, there was a sighting of Hyalophora cecropia each year. Over 628,000 butterfly and moth sightings have been recorded across all of North America 1320 for southern California. Hyalophora cecropia, normally found east of the Rocky Mountains, spotted in California.Since its launch in 2011, the Los Angeles Butterfly Survey has become an invaluable tool encouraging city dwellers to become scientists for the day. Kelly Lotts, co-founder of BAMONA, notes, “It is very easy for kids to grab cameras and to take photographs of species found where they live or at their school… Kids really enjoy being able to point to their dot on the map, to their actual photograph.” The data is used to develop a visual database and life history page for each species including stunning, user-submitted, photographs and maps reflecting recent sightings. The photo and observations are then uploaded to the BAMONA website, where experts identify/verify the species before adding the find to their database. Citizen scientists simply photograph, noting the date, time, and location, of their winged sighting. The Los Angeles Butterfly Survey, a partnership between the all-volunteer Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA) and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, is working with citizen scientists to count and photographically catalogue the butterflies, and moths, found between the urban skyscrapers of southern California.īecoming a butterfly, or moth, hunter has never been easier. Yet, only 236 species of butterfly have been observed in Los Angeles County.Ĭitizen scientists monitoring monarchs on milkweek in Los Angeles. drab monochrome) and diurnal/nocturnal range. Vital to local ecosystems, butterflies and moths are important food sources and pollinators, only differing in their coloration (bold colors vs. More than 174,000 species of butterflies and moths, the Lepidoptera, or scaly-winged insects, have been cataloged, making them some of the most successful insects to flutter across our planet. Could butterflies and moths help scientists understand how living organisms adapt to climate change? Nightly news reports every evening that our fragile blue marble is undergoing significant changes. In the heat of summer monsoons, butterflies accompany the paddling turtles in the lake outside my window… butterfly? Wait a minute I remember dragonflies, not butterflies, from childhood. Hyalophora cecropia “ Once I read a story about a butterfly in the subway, and today, I saw one…” Interested in more moth and butterfly citizen science projects? We’ve got you covered! Live in Los Angeles county? Photograph butterflies and moths, and help scientists study climate change.
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