There was a story on radio national today about climate change and how the migration patterns of birds are being affected by changes in the timing and severity of the seasons - part of the story was of particular interest to me because it talked about using data collected by citizens.
This is an example of data being collected by individuals for their own purposes being put to use for the greater good - providing the tools for people to capture and manage this data online will only increase access, awareness and benefits for all. This needs to be co-ordinated across themes and environments and its needs to be co-ordinated now!
So Dr Lynda Chambers from the Bureau of Meteorology Research Centre was delighted to discover two dairy farmers had kept records of the arrival and departure time of birds on their farm since 1973. The records of 20 species of water and land birds were taken at Middlesex in southwestern Australia.
