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Camera Trapping in Classrooms: Opportunities for Citizen Science to Contribute to the Knowledge of Wild Mammal Distribution

Abstract:

The use of camera trapping to study wildlife has exponentially increased in recent years due to its ease of use and relatively low cost. However, experiences that combine this technique with citizen science to enhance knowledge about the distribution of wildlife are scarce. This study presents the results of an educational experience in several schools in the province of Córdoba, Spain, where camera trapping and citizen science were implemented to assess the abundance and diversity of wild mammals in the surroundings of schools. The records obtained by the camera traps in 11 UTM 10x10 km grids were compared with data available between 2008 and 2023 on GBIF and not validated records on citizen science platforms. In total, the camera traps generated 1605 sequences records, resulting in 589 daily records of 15 species of wild mammals concentrated in a four-month sampling period. This volume of data is comparable to that shared in GBIF in these areas over the past 15 years. Additionally, species whose presence had not been recorded or confirmed at the UTM 10x10 km grid level, as well as species with a low number of observations, were documented. Finally, geographic and sampling effort factors associated with species richness were identified. These results suggest that the use of camera trapping in combination with citizen science in educational centers can generate a significant volume of verifiable and reliable records, thus contributing to improving knowledge about the distribution of wild mammal species.