Join the Urban Wildlife Information Network

What began as a small camera trapping trapping collaboration, is now an international network of scientists using diverse sampling techniques to systemically answer ecological and behavioral questions about urban wildlife. While the heart of UWIN's research still lies in monitoring wildlife with camera traps, the network has begun exploring and expanding their expertise in other sampling methodologies including acoustic monitoring for birds and bat, disease surveillance via vector collection (such as ticks), and small mammal sampling.

If you are interested in joining the Network, please review our protocols listed below and reach out to our team at uwin@lpzoo.org.

UWIN's research protocols are united in that they are designed to capture variation in species ecology and behavior across a gradient of urbanization. However, each partner is based out of a unique region, meaning that no sampling design looks exactly alike. This diversity helps the network understand how variation across landscapes and city infrastructure (physical and cultural) may impact local wildlife. Network staff work directly with partners to determine how UWIN's sampling framework can be applied to their unique community. Through these diverse partnerships we can begin to ask...

1. How does gentrification and wealth shape wildlife diversity and distributions?
2. How may climate change impact wildlife communities across cities?
3. What barriers exist to building wildlife-inclusive cities?

Check out  UWIN publications .

UWIN's general guidelines are to:

• establish sites along an urban gradient (UWIN staff will be happy to assist with site selection) 
• sample across diverse habitat types, e.g. built area, agriculture, grass, forest, etc.
• establish sites >30 sites (~1000m apart) or >50 sites (<1000m apart)
• monitor sites regularly (seasonal sampling preferred)
• willingness to collaborate and share data with partners

 Camera sampling protocol 

 How to set-up a camera trap 

 Equipment Recommendations 

Chicago is the third largest city in the United States and is mostly made up of built, forest, and grassy areas. To examine how wildlife are functioning across these habitats, the Urban Wildlife Institute (based in the Lincoln Park Zoo) collaborates with the Chicago Park District, Archdiocese of Chicago, Forest Preserve Districts, Fermi National Lab, independent golf courses and cemeteries, among others, to survey sites across gradients of urbanization, landcover types, and socioeconomic statuses.

The Network has been piloting and advancing techniques to systematically monitor birds with autonomous recording units (ARU's), specializing in  AudioMoths . Through collaborations with  BirdNet , the Network has worked to streamline acoustic data annotation from Audiomoths in the custom  UWIN Database  which filters out urban noise and integrates BirdNet software to assist in bird identification.

The Network is also interested in expanding the use of AudioMoths and other acoustic detectors to survey additional vocal wildlife, such as bats or amphibians. Further exploration is needed to design systematic protocols and data processing tools for such research.

 Acoustic sampling protocol 

Partners in the Network are working on protocols to investigate the relationship between mammal host communities, tick densities, and tick-borne disease. They use camera traps and 'tick-dragging'--a method where scientists walk transects with a large cloth to collect specimen--to relate tick densities and the presence of bacteria that cause tick-borne diseases with the diversity and activity of urban mammals. Findings are communicated with local health official and media outlets to inform cities about disease risk and best practices.

 Tick sampling protocol 

 Requesting UWIN Data 

 UWIN Code of Conduct 

 Data Sharing MOU 

 Equipment Sharing MOU 

To supporting partners with data processing, the Network has built a custom Google Cloud database. With an account, partners can upload, manage, and synthesize data. This database is currently limited to image and acoustic data collected via camera trap and ARU's.

 UWIN Database Manual 

 UWIN Database Video Tutorial 

• Access to data from across the network
• Granting opportunities
• Opportunities to author highly impactful publications and reports
• Training and guidance from staff on: data gathering, analysis, and visualization, publishing, and project management
• Guidance on outreach: coordinating with landowners, media outlets, and local constituents
• Media attention and added visibility for your projects
• Networking in a collaborative community of like-minded colleagues
• Access to UWIN-related lesson plans, syllabi, and activities for students from grade school (K-12) to collegiate levels
• Access to training materials for students and volunteers

Subgroups of UWIN partners have formed specialty committees. These committees serve as an opportunity to collaborate and learn in smaller groups to deep dive into specific fields. Any UWIN member is welcome to join existing committees or propose new ones.

This committee discusses topics related to environmental justice including, gentrification, redlining, and equity related to urban landscapes and wildlife. They use scientific papers and reports to direct discussions and are actively working on manuscripts unpacking these themes with data collected by UWIN partners.

This committee’s mission is to develop resources and tools for diverse communities (scientists, landowners, government municipalities, urban designers, etc.) to engage with wildlife conservation and management. An ongoing project is expanding the  Urban Wildlife Project Webpage .

This committee is working to develop new systematic UWIN protocols related to the monitoring of wildlife. They have trialed the use of Audiomoths in 10 UWIN cities and are collaborating with  Cornell’s BirdNET  to interpret acoustic bird data and develop methodologies for data analysis.

This committee is widely interested in facilitating multi-city projects that focus on the health of wildlife, people, and the environment - concepts related to  One Health . Currently, they are developing methodologies to survey tick diversity and abundance as well as tick-borne pathogen presence and prevalence in participating UWIN cities

This committee is working to expand the application of novel technology to UWIN research. Some projects include verifying the application of machine learning to annotate urban photo data and incorporating citizen science into a research workflow.

This committee was formed to develop safety protocols for UWIN partners. This team has developed a living ‘UWIN Field Safety Guide’ which remains flexible and adaptable for future partner needs. Members also maintain a library of field safety resources, including protocols from other labs/universities and published papers

This committee provides resources and supports to partners interested in developing sustainable programming that integrates community members into UWIN data collection, annotation, outreach, and other components of UWIN research.

The landscape of a city is complex, housing not only humans, but also a multitude of wildlife species. To create functional ecosystems that allow humans and nature to thrive, we need to look at the bigger picture. The Urban Wildlife Information Network (UWIN) works in collaboration with architects and urban planners to bridge scientific research with the development and design of environmentally-friendly cityscapes. As cities expand and more of the human population occupies these dense areas, it is important to address the impacts to wildlife if we are to sustainably develop. The larger landscape of a city must be understood to predict which plants and animals will thrive on and around a site, and how to maximize positive interactions between people and wildlife, while minimizing conflict. It’s not only a question of providing a greenspace, but also of evaluating the zoning of the surrounding land, how/if the land is connected to other greenspaces, and what animals naturally occupy the area.

Ecologists and biologists can help! Scientists can monitor the wildlife composition of a site before, during, and after a project to help develop environmentally-functional designs, and can provide a wealth of data on the results of other, similar projects. Monitoring is also a useful way to benchmark success and prove you have created a design that is beneficial to humans and hospitable to the local animals and plants. Collaborating with scientists can help ensure environmental standards and benchmarks are met. UWIN can provide data, resources, and expertise.