Become a Somerset Citizen Scientist with Conservation Volunteers

Bringing people and science together for a better future

CVA’s Bushfire Recovery and Resilience teams have been working with the Somerset Regional Council in Qld to restore native habitats of native species including the koala. We’re inviting you to connect with the local environment through Citizen Science and become nature stewards for local plants and wildlife.

Wallaby and joey at Shines Rd monitoring site

It’s an opportunity for people in the Somerset region to connect with their local environment and community to work together to nurture local plants and wildlife.

Through citizen science activities, you learn skills in wildlife monitoring, bird observation, and how to be part of native habitat restoration and maintenance. You will also have the chance to find out how to make your backyard wildlife-friendly by creating Nature Blocks.

How to become a Somerset Citizen Scientist?

All you need is a desire to take action for nature and connect with your local community.

CVA creates citizen science volunteer opportunities for people to develop a deeper understanding and connection with our natural world, to become nature stewards. We’re dedicated to being a catalyst for change through citizen science opportunities that are accessible both online and on the ground as part of long-term initiatives supporting Australian native habitat, threatened species, and building biodiversity. Some of the ways we will be doing this with the Somerset community include:

1. Somerset DigiVol Wildlife Spotter

CVA has created a unique Somerset project on the Australia Museum DigiVol Wildlife Spotter platform to help us record the wildlife returning to the areas we have restored. DigiVol is a collaboration between the Australian Museum and the Atlas of Living Australia, and all data contributes to the Australian biodiversity database.

Through the CVA channel on DigiVol, you can take part in DigiVol Wildlife Spotter expeditions to help identify and verify the presence, and absence of wildlife captured on our camera traps. This helps us to build a deep understanding of the success of our habitat restoration work, and the health of target species such as the Bandicoot and Koalas.

To become a Somerset online Citizen Scientist through our Somerset Wildlife Spotter remote fauna camera traps, register your interest below and we’ll send you an email with the next steps!

2. Somerset Citizen Science Expeditions

Join the CVA team and local wildlife experts to explore the bushland of the Somerset area and help us record the native plants and animals in the area. By using the global citizen science iNaturalist App you can find out more about what lives in the area as you explore it with your community. Once you have learnt how to use iNaturalist app and gained some valuable local knowledge about the native species in your area you can continue to record your local biodiversity using the iNaturalist App at your own leisure.

Register your interest in joining the Somerset Citizen Science events below.