Being a citizen scientist means you can help real scientists with their research, even if you’re not a professional scientist yourself.
🐦 If you live along a migratory bird flyway, you can track bird activity with two free apps from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Merlin Bird ID and eBird. Merlin uses AI and app data to help you identify birds based on their sounds, size, or color. eBird allows you to log the birds you see (or hear), and the data you submit helps scientists study migration patterns and track local bird populations.
🌷 For species that don’t move as quickly as birds, try the iNaturalist app! Use it to identify plants, insects, amphibians, and other animals in your area. Just snap a photo, and the app’s community of users will help identify what you’ve found. The data you collect is shared with researchers to better understand the biodiversity in your community.
🌟 Take your learning further with a Take Action Project: host a migratory bird-watching party at your school, or invite neighbors to explore and identify local wildlife using iNaturalist.
📱 Apps like iNaturalist, Merlin Bird ID, and eBird are available on both Apple and Android devices. You can also check out BirdCast for migration alerts or explore All About Birds to discover which feathered friends might visit you this spring!
SciStarter Bird Themed Projects
Projects last checked in March of 2025. See SciStarter Project Finder for current information.
- iNaturalist – Share the biodiversity that you and your troops explore
- iNaturalist – Take photos of biodiversity and upload to iNaturalist
- eBird – Collect, archive, and search bird observations.
GSUSA Citizen Scientist Journeys
- Daisy – Daisy Think Like a Citizen Scientist – do hands-on activities to learn how to make observations and collect data
- Brownie – Brownie Think Like a Citizen Science – 2 observation games and a SciStarter project
- Junior – Junior Think Like a Citizen Scientist – 2 observation games and a SciStarter project
- Cadette – Cadette Think Like a Citizen Scientist – make observations about your environment, create a community field guide and a SciStarter project
- Senior – Senior Think Like a Citizen Scientist – make observations about your environment, design a way to test a hypothesis and a SciStarter project
- Ambassador – Ambassador Think Like a Citizen Scientist – 3 observation sessions of a citizen science project from SciStarter and collect data from you community
The Badge Archive 