Finkelstein and Bakker launch 'Condor Watch' project on Zooniverse
Biologists studying the endangered California condor have launched a new web site to enlist the help of citizen scientists in research aimed at reducing lead poisoning, the primary threat to condors in the wild.
Condor Watch (www.condorwatch.org) asks volunteers to look at photos of condors taken by motion-activated cameras at sites where condors are fed as part of regular management activities. By identifying the tag number of each condor and describing its behavior, citizen scientists will help researchers understand condor social networks and other factors that may be related to lead poisoning. Ultimately, the project will improve the ability of condor biologists to identify birds that are at high risk for poisonings and develop better strategies for ensuring the species' successful recovery in the wild.
Launched on April 15, Condor Watch is part of Zooniverse, a collection of of web-based citizen science projects that use the efforts of volunteers to help researchers deal with the flood of data that confronts them.