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Updated: Apr 21, 2026

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Community Science: Big Insights From Small Mammal Data.

Marion Sherbourne1, Meghan Ward1, Meagan Stager1

  • 1Environmental and Life Sciences Graduate Program Trent University Peterborough Ontario Canada.

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|April 20, 2026
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Community science data is useful for common species but struggles with rare or hard-to-identify small mammals. Combining multiple data sources, like iNaturalist and direct records, creates a more complete biodiversity picture.

Keywords:
abundantcitizen sciencecrypticenigmaticiNaturalistrare

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Biodiversity Informatics
  • Citizen Science

Background:

  • Biodiversity surveys are resource-intensive, making community science databases valuable for data collection.
  • Community science data is most effective for easily identifiable species, with challenges for cryptic or rare species.
  • Assessing the reliability of community science for small mammal distribution and abundance is crucial for conservation efforts.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the effectiveness of community science data, including iNaturalist and Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), for monitoring small mammal distribution and abundance in Ontario, Canada.
  • To assess the impact of a community outreach campaign on increasing contributions of small mammal records.
  • To determine the limitations of community science for identifying rare or difficult-to-distinguish species.

Main Methods:

  • Selected eight focal small mammal species based on historical abundance and identification ease.
  • Conducted a community outreach campaign from May to August 2025 to encourage species record submissions.
  • Collected data from iNaturalist, GBIF, and direct community submissions, comparing pre- and post-campaign observations.
  • Analyzed the number of submissions for focal species to gauge campaign effectiveness.

Main Results:

  • The outreach campaign did not significantly increase iNaturalist submissions for focal small mammal species.
  • Abundant and easily identifiable species were overrepresented, while rare or confusible species had few records.
  • Combining iNaturalist, GBIF, and direct community records substantially increased the overall dataset size.
  • Few new iNaturalist records for rare species may indicate a lack of photographic evidence for identification.

Conclusions:

  • Community science repositories have limitations in monitoring rare and confusible small mammal species.
  • Integrating diverse community data sources, beyond iNaturalist, provides a more comprehensive dataset.
  • Researchers and enthusiasts should contribute photographs of rare or confusing species and assist in validation.
  • Establishing a verification process for community science records, even without images, is recommended.