Why scientists want your photos of wildlife eating lunch
With a new platform called Who Eats Whom, citizen scientists reveal the fascinating, sometimes shocking interactions between species.
When you think of the food chain, you might picture a simple chain of predator and prey, like a rat munching on garden crops, an ermine snatching the rat, and an eagle swooping down on the ermine. However, the reality is far more complex. Parasites such as ticks and intestinal worms also feed on these creatures, and scavengers like ants clean up the carcasses after predators die.
Even rats are known to prey on their own offspring. Traditionally, scientists have spent countless hours observing bird nests and analyzing scat to understand these intricate species interactions. Now, a citizen science project called Who Eats Whom has introduced a more efficient and engaging method. This project utilizes iNaturalist, a social network for sharing nature photos, to identify and geotag species in images uploaded by users.
Searching for "brown rat," for instance, reveals images of American ermines carrying them off near Ottawa, Canada. The project has already documented 17,000 interactions among 5,700 species across more than 100 countries. Ecologist Bradley Allf, who developed the platform, explains that crowdsourcing enables scientists to gather vast amounts of valuable information that would otherwise require extensive individual effort.
The database captures fleeting snapshots of interactions at specific moments, but the goal is to collect data over time to observe how ecosystems change with the planet. By exploring the "Interactive Food Web" feature, users can see how red-tailed hawks prey on small mammals such as mice and voles, and how American robins feed on invasive plants like common buckthorn and yaupon holly.
The project also highlights the role of pollinators like Western honey bees, which are eaten by goldenrod crab spiders and help plants reproduce by spreading pollen. The project has captured some surprising interactions, including New World vultures feasting on wild boars, raccoons, and groundhogs, as well as a New World vulture consuming a stillborn baby shark on a California beach.
Ecologists have benefited from the involvement of smartphone users in documenting these interactions, acting as "armies of invaluable allies" in the study of food webs. Understanding who eats whom is crucial for conservation efforts, as species are forced to adapt to rapidly changing environments due to climate change. By knowing the prey preferences of invasive species, conservationists can better protect native species that may already be struggling from habitat loss and other threats.
In this rapidly evolving world, citizen scientists with smartphones are becoming the first to document the arrival of new animals in their areas, providing crucial data for scientists and conservationists to maintain healthy ecosystems.
Written by urgent.news from Grist's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
