NATURE WATCHING ISN’T JUST FUN, IT CAN BE USEFUL TOO By Michael
Davenport, Marine Species & GIS Programs Manager Like many
birdwatchers, although I still enjoy seeing the neighborhood
cardinal in my yard, it’s the sightings of rarely encountered
species, especially those classified as endangered, threatened,
or special concern, which really keep my eyes scanning around
during a hike. Observations of Special Concern species, such as
this Eastern Box Turtle, may be reported to the NJ Endangered
Species Program. Photo by Mike Davenport. Many birdwatchers, or
nature enthusiasts of other species groups such as reptiles or
butterflies, share their encounters with rare species on
websites or bulletin boards. In addition, several organizations,
such as the Cornell Lab of Ornithology or NJ Audubon, recruit
“citizen scientists” who collect species observation data and
submit that data electronically via websites such as eBird. That
data is important for those organizations’ scientific research
and assists scientists in