Hello friends and welcome. Today we’re going to be jumping into our Thru the Lens project which was created in collaboration with the Climate Science Alliance as a part of their Climate Kids initiative.

During our time together today we’re going to better understand the impacts of climate change on wildlife how scientists monitor them and what we can do to help protect wildlife and preserve the spaces that they call home.

Here are a few examples of different wildlife that can be found within San Diego. Do you recognize any of the wildlife on the pictures on the left and have you ever seen them in real life? Wildlife is under a great amount of pressure due to climate change and increased human activity. Habitats are changing quickly. For example, landscapes can change from natural to urban or from forest to shrubland. Unfortunately, wildlife won’t be able to adapt to these changes quickly enough but scientists and citizen scientists work to gather data in order to protect wildlife and preserve spaces they call home. Data is gathered in many different ways but today we’re going to focus on how and why scientists use wildlife camera traps these camera traps are relatively simple and an inexpensive tool that provides data and information on how to protect wildlife in the face of climate change and increased human activity.

So why use wildlife camera traps? First of all, they are a relatively inexpensive and simple tool scientists can learn things from whether or not a species is present or absent, how populations are changing over time, how they use the habitats and are they critical areas or are they used as corridors to move through. The camera traps are set up in a strategic location taking into consideration the direction of the sun, camera height off the ground, and the surrounding foliage. They want to ensure that they are capturing the best images possible. After the camera has been out in the field for several weeks and even months, the camera trap is collected and images are processed. They’re being processed both by scientists and everyday citizens.

Now that we better understand why data is collected, let’s take a closer look at a wildlife camera trap. Cameras can vary in shape, size, makeup, and complexity. Cameras are favored by scientists because they minimize disturbance to wildlife. Instead of gathering data in person, these cameras give an up close and personal look into the everyday behaviors and movements of wildlife. Cameras operate continually and are powered by batteries. Most often cameras are deployed for several weeks, up to a month at a time and can gather thousands of photos.

Breaking down the camera trap, at the very top we have the led flash. It allows for photos to be taken at night and causes less stress for wildlife when compared to regular camera flash.

The camera lens is at the center. This is what captures the photo.

Lastly, at the bottom of the camera is the sensor that detects movement. Many photos captured don’t even include wildlife but rather blades of grass or trees moved by the wind. That’s why images need to be sorted by citizen scientists like us.

Here’s a great opportunity to pause and share with those around you. That sort of things would you look for when placing your camera? Where do you think would be a good place to put a wildlife camera? Pause and share here.

Here is an example of a wildlife camera photo. Cameras capture the same three points of information: temperature, date, and time. Different makes and models can have additional points of information. If desired, at the bottom of this image, you can see the make of the camera called Bushnell. Scientists can name the camera. This one just says “camera name” to keep track of where the image came from. This camera captures temperature, date, time, and even the lunar phase. You can see this information at the very bottom of the photo.

Now that we better understand wildlife camera traps and how the photos are used – let’s take a look at some images gathered by the San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy. The photos were taken throughout the San Dieguito Watershed, spanning from the mountain tops all the way to the ocean. While looking through some of these images, work on making observations reflecting on what you saw and take note of any questions that may come up.

Here, we have a bobcat from April 2018. Based on this photo, why do you think the camera trap was set up in this location? What is attracting the bobcat to this area? You may need to pause and look closely.

Two grey foxes have made their debut. Taken in August 2019 this early evening photo was captured in black and white mode because the sun was beginning to set.

On this hot, July day a fawn is seen trotting into frame. Images like this give scientists a clue on how these spaces are being used.

These bandits were caught in the act! The act of enjoying some family time and a dip in the water. Why do you think this family of raccoons was visiting the water at this time of night?

A buck is seen walking onward in this image. Do you notice anything in the far background that could influence this deer’s behavior? Pause and look closely.

In early February of 2019, the San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy got proof of a longtime hunch. Finally a mountain lion was captured on camera this photo was taken in the early hours of a cold February morning just a few miles east of the Safari Park in Escondido.

For this picture you’ll definitely want to pause. Look closely. What animal are you seeing? For a little hint we have seen an animal like this in previous photos. They’re camouflaged extremely well against the surrounding soil and rocks.

Last, but not least, we see our favorite coyote on camera. Coyotes are opportunistic hunters and have a very diverse diet. This coyote can be seen scavenging a sizable meal.

We’re gonna go ahead and pause here and share some things maybe that you observed or wondered about while looking through these photos. Is there one photo that has stood out to you and if so why?

So that was a lot of information, thanks for sticking with me. To review what we’ve learned we know that wildlife is diverse. There’s a lot of different species that we can see moving throughout both natural and urban environments. Scientists collect data in many different ways including the use of camera traps. These camera traps allow us to understand how wildlife is moving, their behavior, and their population over long periods of time. And unfortunately, wildlife is being affected by climate change and increased human activity. Through the use of data that’s gathered from camera trap photos – it assists in the development of land management plans that help support wildlife. Most importantly humans can take action to protect wildlife and decrease the impact of climate change through personal action and becoming a citizen scientist.

Here are 10 things that you can do to give wildlife a break. Pause here and see which ones you can incorporate into your life whenever you’re going into a natural space.

Additionally to decrease the impacts of climate change pause here and look at the 10 different
things that you can do to help.

I’m curious what will your climate commitment be.

Pause and share here what climate commitment you’ve chosen. This is a great step to help protecting our natural spaces as well as the wildlife that live within them.

Thank you so much for spending time with me today friends to learn more about wildlife, how we use camera traps to track their movement, their behavior, and populations and how we can help them in the face of climate change and increased human activity.