March 22, 2019 at 4:59 p.m.
natural reaction
Spying on the neighbors
natural reaction
By Jacob Friede-
Now, thanks to Snapshot Wisconsin, the secret wonders of the state's wilderness can be observed from the comforts of home.
Snapshot Wisconsin is a network of volunteer trail camera operators stationed all across the state. The project, which is a collaboration with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, gives free trail cameras and instructions on placement to accepted applicants. Trail cam hosts must have at least 10 contiguous acres of land and must check the camera every 90 days for a year.
The photos collected are then hosted on Zooniverse, a crowdsourcing website for citizen science projects, where they can be viewed and classified.
The fascinating images resulting from project also help the Wisconsin DNR observe and manage wildlife.
Trees for Tomorrow, a natural resources specialty school in Eagle River, has been hosting a Snapshot Wisconsin trail cam since 2017. The school, which provides hands-on environmental education for K-12 students and adults, was chosen as Snapshot Wisconsin's Volunteer of the Month for March 2019.
Melanie Stewart-Clarke, an environmental science educator, overseas the trail camera at the school and said the project has been very beneficial in teaching students about the animal behavior in the vicinity of the school. The project even inspired a trail cameras class for high school students.
"In this class, students visit our trail camera and learn how to scout a good site for a trail cam," Stewart-Clarke said. "They then classify photos, either from our trail camera or from Snapshot Wisconsin photos throughout the state. Finally, they are asked to analyze trail camera data in order to make claims about the life history of different species."
So far, the Trees for Tomorrow camera has captured 116 birds, two domestic cats, 2,021 deer, 12 domestic dogs, 49 red foxes, three mink, two muskrats, two otters, 116 raccoons, one skunk, 44 squirrels and chipmunks, and four weasels.
Photos of their wild neighbors greet the school's visitors in the main lobby of Trees for Tomorrow.
Stewart-Clarke said the Snapshot Wisconsin project has been a blast for everybody at the school and it has proved to be a most effective visual aid for teaching.
"Having a trail camera on campus is great because it provides a very intimate look into our wildlife species without being intrusive on their day-to-day activities," Stewart-Clarke said. "People love to look at the photos we get and learn more about the different species that share this space with us. It really helps build a deeper connection to their sense of place at Trees for Tomorrow."
Applications for Snapshot Wisconsin can be found on the Wisconsin DNR's website at dnr.wi.gov, keyword search Snapshot Wisconsin.
For more information on Trees for Tomorrow visit www.treesfortomorrow.com.
Jacob Friede may be reached at [email protected] or [email protected].
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