Understanding citizen science and environmental monitoring: final report on behalf of UK Environmental Observation Framework

Citizen science can broadly be defined as the involvement of volunteers in science. Over the past decade there has been a rapid increase in the number of citizen science initiatives. The breadth of environmental-based citizen science is immense. Citizen scientists have surveyed for and monitored a broad range of taxa, and also contributed data on weather and habitats reflecting an increase in engagement with a diverse range of observational science. Citizen science has taken many varied approaches from citizen-led (co-created) projects with local community groups to, more commonly, scientist-led mass participation initiatives that are open to all sectors of society. Citizen science provides an indispensable means of combining environmental research with environmental education and wildlife recording. Here we provide a synthesis of extant citizen science projects using a novel cross-cutting approach to objectively assess understanding of citizen science and environmental monitoring including: 1. Brief overview of knowledge on the motivations of volunteers. 2. Semi-systematic review of environmental citizen science projects in order to understand the variety of extant citizen science projects. 3. Collation of detailed case studies on a selection of projects to complement the semi-systematic review. 4. Structured interviews with users of citizen science and environmental monitoring data focussing on policy, in order to more fully understand how citizen science can fit into policy needs. 5. Review of technology in citizen science and an exploration of future opportunities

Companion planting to attract pollinators increases the yield and quality of strawberry fruit in gardens and allotments

1. Global pollinator declines have led to concern that crop yields might fall as a result of a pollination deficit. Companion planting is a traditional practice thought to increase yield of insect pollinated crops by planting a co-flowering species next to the crop. 2. Using a combination of conventional researcher-led experiments and observational citizen scientist data, we tested the effectiveness of bee-friendly borage (Borago officinalis) as a companion plant to strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa). Insect visitors to the ‘Test’ (strawberry + borage) versus ‘Control’ (strawberry only) plants were observed, and strawberry fruit collected. Strawberries collected during the researcher-led experiment were also subject to fruit measurements and assessments of market quality. 3. Companion plants were found to significantly increase both yield and market quality of strawberries, suggesting an increase in insect pollination per plant. Test strawberries companion planted with borage produced an average of 35% more fruits, and 32% increased yield by weight. Test strawberry plants produced significantly more fruit of higher aesthetic quality when assessed by Marketing Standards for Strawberries. 4. Although there was no significant difference in the overall insect visits, when broken down by broad insect group there were significantly more flies visiting the test strawberries than controls. 5. These results could have implications for both gardeners and commercial growers. As consumers prefer a cosmetically perfect fruit, the production of fruit with increased aesthetics aids food waste reduction

The JNCC terrestrial biodiversity surveillance schemes: an assessment of coverage

Biodiversity information is needed to provide a sound evidence base for decision-making, including operational needs, statutory reporting requirements and strategic needs. In this study we sought to assess aspects of coverage so as to identify gaps in taxonomic, thematic (habitat) and spatial coverage which might need to be addressed in future

The state of Britain’s larger moths 2021

This report summarises current knowledge of the state of Britain’s c.900 species of larger moths, presenting analyses of long-term change based on millions of records gathered through the Rothamsted Insect Survey (RIS) and National Moth Recording Scheme (NMRS)

Guide to citizen science: developing, implementing and evaluating citizen science to study biodiversity and the environment in the UK

Citizen science – the involvement of volunteers in science – isn’t new. Within the UK we have a long and rich tradition of scientific discovery by unpaid individuals and interest groups. Indeed our current understanding of UK wildlife and the wider environment is due in large part to the dedication and expertise of the naturalist community

Using Citizen Science to Raise Public Awareness and Engagement with Water Issues

The world faces increasing freshwater supply challenges, fueled partly by rising demand as well as mismanagement of existing resources. This necessitates an aware and engaged public as well as sound water resource management that is supported by data-driven scientific knowledge. Often the public lacks sufficient awareness to participate in resource management; and too often scientists and decision-makers struggle to obtain sufficient good quality data (across time and space scales) to effect change. Citizen science offers a powerful tool to tackle both these challenges by providing efficient and effective ways to obtain useful data while educating citizens about water issues. This article uses examples to describe the role of citizen science, the opportunities available for engagement and identifies criteria for success

Ash dieback: long-term monitoring of impacts on biodiversity

The overall objective of this study was to scope-out the options for a long-term monitoring strategy of the impacts of ash dieback on biodiversity in the UK. This objective was addressed using a 3-day facilitated workshop at CEH Wallingford, bringing together expertise from CEH, various NGOs and the statutory agencies. The main questions addressed were: (1) What are the monitoring needs for ash dieback? (2) How suitable are existing surveys? (3) How does current monitoring need to be enhanced or extended

A unified approach to percolation processes on multiplex networks

Many real complex systems cannot be represented by a single network, but due to multiple sub-systems and types of interactions, must be represented as a multiplex network. This is a set of nodes which exist in several layers, with each layer having its own kind of edges, represented by different colors. An important fundamental structural feature of networks is their resilience to damage, the percolation transition. Generalization of these concepts to multiplex networks requires careful definition of what we mean by connected clusters. We consider two different definitions. One, a rigorous generalization of the single-layer definition leads to a strong non-local rule, and results in a dramatic change in the response of the system to damage. The giant component collapses discontinuously in a hybrid transition characterized by avalanches of diverging mean size. We also consider another definition, which imposes weaker conditions on percolation and allows local calculation, and also leads to different sized giant components depending on whether we consider an activation or pruning process. This 'weak' process exhibits both continuous and discontinuous transitions

Challenging the view that invasive non-native plants are not a significant threat to the floristic diversity of Great Britain

Conservation scientists and practitioners have long recognized that not all non-native species pose a threat to biodiversity, yet some ecologists still fail to grasp this message (1). The conclusions drawn by Thomas and Palmer (2) that non-native plant species are not a threat to floral diversity in Britain highlight how this lack of understanding can lead to inappropriate analyses and misleading inferences regarding the impacts of non-native species. Thomas and Palmer base their conclusions on an analysis of the Countryside Survey (CS): this valuable dataset depicts large-scale vegetation changes in common habitats, but its stratified random design does not provide a comprehensive assessment of the impacts of non-native plant species on native

Challenging the view that invasive non-native plants are not a significant threat to the floristic diversity of Great Britian

Conservation scientists and practitioners have long recognized that not all non-native species pose a threat to biodiversity, yet some ecologists still fail to grasp this message (1). The conclusions drawn by Thomas and Palmer (2) that non-native plant species are not a threat to floral diversity in Britain highlight how this lack of understanding can lead to inappropriate analyses and misleading inferences regarding the impacts of non-native species. Thomas and Palmer base their conclusions on an analysis of the Countryside Survey (CS): this valuable dataset depicts large-scale vegetation changes in common habitats, but its stratified random design does not provide a comprehensive assessment of the impacts of non-native plant species on native biodiversity