London HogWatch

The Project

During the winter months from November to February, hedgehogs hibernate, we therefore carry out our surveys mostly between between April and October. The modern camera trap is a digital camera that we strap to a tree at about 30cm from the ground and angled downwards to make sure we don't miss any hedgehogs. The cameras are triggered by heat and motion so when an animal moves past the cameras sensor, it triggers the camera to go off and take an image, which gets stored on a memory card inside the camera. Cameras are set to take a image every second it is triggered meaning we usually have a sequence of images of animal moving in front of the camera.

Cameras are left on for 24 hours a day for 2 weeks to a month, meaning we collect thousands or sometimes millions of images! We take all the information we learn from these images to give to the local council or conservation groups about what animals are in their green spaces and what we think they could do to help protect and save them.

Can you only see part of an animal?

Sometimes due to the speed or size of an animal only part of an animal is visible in the image. If you're struggling to identify the animal from this image try narrowing down your search and use some clues. What size is it, does it have fur or feather, can you tell if its a mammal, bird or reptile? Try and get as close as possible as you can but don't worry as many different people will view the image and if the researchers receive a wide variety of answers it will highlight the need for that image to be reviewed by one of the researchers.

Why are there photos of Humans?

Our surveys take place in public spaces so we do occasionally get photos of humans. We have tried our best to remove any human images using AI software but some images may slip through. Please mark any photo sequence containing a person OR vehicle (car, truck, boat, etc.) as human. If you have concerns about a particular set of images, please message a team member with the subject ID information instead of sharing it to the talk boards. You can find team member user names along the right hand side of the "Team" page.

Predation

Sometimes you might see a fox, cat or badger with an animal in its mouth. Please classify the image based on the animal that is alive. You can make a note of the other animal in "Talk" if you wish.

I'm struggling to identify a species

Camera trap images can make telling species apart really difficult at times, particularly with bird species. If you're struggling try using our field guide (click the tab on the right side of your screen) for more info on distinguishing these and other species.

What should I do if I come across photos of a sick/injured/dying animal?

If you come across a subject of a sick/injured/dying animal, we ask that you classify the photos as normal. The subject should not be shared to the Zooniverse talk board if the images could be interpreted as graphic or disturbing to some people. In the event that you come across a subject like this on the talk boards, please report the post so it can be reviewed by a Snapshot team member.

How should I classify an animal I truly can’t identify?

We realize it can be frustrating, but even those impossible-to-ID -photos are helpful data! Please check our field guide for tips on how to ID the tough species. If you want some expert feedback, use the hashtag #whatis in the Talk section and we will do our best to help. If after you've tried everything possible to ID, you can click 'I Don't Know' button and move onto the next photo, but more often than not your guess is probably correct!