01Apr 2021 by Amy Slocombe No Comments
From Seed Grant to published paper!

From Seed Grant to published paper!

ACSA development, Collaboration & partnerships, Field-based citizen science, Showcasing science outcomes
Primary school sting nets new wasp species ACSA is so pleased that the Seed Grant awarded to Erinn Fagan-Jeffries in 2019 has allowed her to complete her dream project!! Four regional schools in South Australia collected insects using Malaise traps, and all four found and named new species of parasitoid wasp! Dr Erinn Fagan-Jeffries helping students to check whether there were any insects flying inside the newly set-up Malaise trap at Ramco Primary School. Erinn's paper has been published in Zootaxa and you can read a summary by the University of Adelaide here. Congratulations Erinn!
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04Sep 2020 by Erinn Fagan-Jeffries No Comments
Insect Investigators – a school-based citizen science project discovering and documenting our biodiversity

Insect Investigators – a school-based citizen science project discovering and documenting our biodiversity

Blogs, Collaboration & partnerships, Communication & promotion, Field-based citizen science, Showcasing science outcomes
By Erin Fagan-Jeffries My goal is to get the community more involved in the process of how we document and describe our biodiversity – I believe we all should be part of this process to better understand what is living in the environment that we call home. The seed grant from the Australian Citizen Science Association allowed me to top up the amount available from my broader postdoctoral funding to allow four trials of a citizen science project that connected school groups to the process of species discovery. So far, trials of a project have been underway at four school across South Australia: Macclesfield Primary School in the Adelaide Hills, Cowell Area School on the Eyre Peninsula, and Waikerie and Ramco Primary Schools in the Riverland. Each school set up…
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13Feb 2020 by Amy Slocombe No Comments
Adelaide takes on the Challenge!

Adelaide takes on the Challenge!

Communication & promotion, Field-based citizen science, Meetings and Events
Have you heard of the City Nature Challenge? Last year, 159 cities were involved globally, with more than 35,000 participants, but none in Australia. We are changing that this year, with four cities representing our nation: Greater Adelaide Area (SA), Geelong (VIC), Redland City (QLD) and Sydney (NSW). We are involved in an international competition to find and document plants and wildlife in cities across the globe. We hope you can make a contribution! How to get involved: You can participate as an individual and we hope you can spread the word to get friends and colleagues involved, too! When? Any time from April 24 to April 27 – you can participate for four minutes or four days (any time you can spare)! How? Find wild plants and wildlife in…
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05Dec 2019 by Rosalinde Brinkman No Comments
Gold Coast BioBlitz

Gold Coast BioBlitz

Blogs, Field-based citizen science, Meetings and Events
The Gold Coast is all about enjoying our natural areas and environment and spending heaps of time on the beach. However, the wild array of wildlife often seems to be overlooked whilst doing so. Local community organisation, the Gold Coast Catchment Association hosted the Gold Coast Bioblitz 2019 together with SEQ NRM Healthy Land and Water. The 24 hour event included a full weekend of flora and fauna surveys conducted by 230 community members under the expert guidance of 50 scientist and survey assistants. The aim for the BioBlitz was to discover the hidden creatures of the Gold Coast hinterland as well as to engage the local community through education and hands-on experience, in this case in the beautiful Austinville Valley. These intensive biological surveys done over the 24 hour…
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23Apr 2019 by Danielle Northey No Comments
My Year in Bhutan

My Year in Bhutan

Blogs, Field-based citizen science
By Danielle Northey, ACSA member and volunteer [caption id="attachment_14851" align="alignleft" width="250"] Danielle Northey with a Rheum nobile, a peculiar species of rhubarb which grows above 4000m[/caption] As I snuggled with my daughter in the warm autumn sun streaming through the window of our home nestled in the Himalayan mountains of Bhutan, I commented that the peach tree was beginning to lose its leaves. I said winter was on its way and that I was waiting for the Yellow-billed blue magpies to return to our garden. As if by cue, a Yellow-billed blue magpie streaked past our window. These majestic magpies are nothing like Australian magpies. They have elongated tails which make them glide through the air. Their tails are stripy and their bills are yellow, as you might expect, but I…
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14Jun 2018 by Michelle Neil No Comments
Elysia australis – The Elusive Australian

Elysia australis – The Elusive Australian

Field-based citizen science, Showcasing science outcomes
It was Sunday the 10th of February 2018. The day dawned a great deal cooler that the previous 40⁰C we had been experiencing in Adelaide that week. A small bus load of tired but happy delegates headed out to visit Aldinga Reef, home of one of ReefWatch SA’s longest running citizen science projects, on the final #CitSciOz18 Road Trip. Approximately 40 minutes later we arrived at Aldinga Beach where we were met with light winds, sunny skies and our citizen scientist hosts; Neville Hudson and Thelma Bridle. [caption id="attachment_7009" align="alignnone" width="960"] Hard rolled ball of seaweed at Aldinga Beach (pic: Michelle Neil)[/caption] After a brief chat we donned our old sneakers or aqua shoes and headed down the long winding raised path to the sand below. Once on the sand…
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