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Would you like to spend time outdoors, learn more about amphibians, help us protect them and win a prize? Then take part in the AmphiBiom: Citizen Science Award 2025.
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AmphiBiom: Citizen Science Award 2025 at a glance
Aim: „AmphiBiom - Amphibien erlauschen und Arten schützen!“ records amphibian calls throughout Austria with the support of interested parties and aims to use this nationwide call monitoring to gain important insights for the protection of endangered amphibian species
Scientific area: Natural sciences
Location: Participation in research is possible throughout Austria
Target audiences: School classes/youth groups aged 12 and over, families and individuals
Necessary equipment: Smartphone with microphone, camera and internet access; account on the “AmphiApp”
Registration to participate in research: Fill out the registration form on the project website, create an account in the “AmphiApp”. Teachers and youth group leaders create a collective account for their class or group
Research period: April 1 to July 31, 2025 (the competition can be entered at any time until the end of July)
Activities of the Citizen Scientists: Record amphibian calls and report them via the “AmphiApp” together with a photo of the area where the animal was heard. Additional information and assistance is available on the project website
Time required for research: Listening in the field and reporting in the “AmphiApp”: approx. 5-10 minutes per report
Who is eligible to participate?
- School classes and youth groups (aged 12 and over)
- Families
- Individuals
Research period
April 1 to July 31, 2025 (you can enter the competition at any time until the end of July). You are also welcome to participate in our call monitoring outside this period. However, these contributions will not be counted towards your participation in the Citizen Science Award 2025.
What is there to win?
The school classes/youth groups will receive cash prizes.
- 1st place: 1 000 Euro
- 2nd place: 750 Euro
- 3rd place: 500 Euro
Three families and three individuals will receive non-cash prizes.
Determination of the winners:
School classes/youth groups that have successfully submitted more than 50 validated call recordings via the “AmphiApp” will automatically be entered into a lottery pot. Families and individuals with 25 validated call recordings will be entered into the lottery pot. The winners of each category will be drawn from these lottery pots.
This is how it works:
- Register for the CSA on the project page
- Download the free “AmphiApp” and create an account
- Take a walk, listen carefully & record calls
- Upload collected data as spot entries to the “AmphiApp”
Information on the exact procedure can be found in our instructions and videos: Call monitoring via the AmphiApp.
What happens to the Citizen Scientists' contributions?
The reports received can be viewed on a map in the “AmphiApp”.
The call monitoring data collected on amphibian calls is then statistically analyzed and published in a scientific publication. This will be freely available and publicly accessible on the project website and on the “Zenodo” platform.
We will keep you up to date with project news on our blog on Österreich forscht and the Österreich forscht Instagram channel.
Project description
Amphibians are one of the most endangered groups of animals in the world and often appear inconspicuous. However, some of them can make themselves heard impressively loud or charmingly calling, such as the green toad with its bright trill.
The “AmphiBiom” project investigates the calls of green toads and other amphibians in Austria and invites you to go on a curious discovery tour through the local nature. Using the “AmphiApp”, the citizen scientists record amphibian calls and upload them to the project's database together with information on the location where the amphibians were heard. The participation of citizen scientists forms the basis for a nationwide documentation of amphibian calls, which makes it possible to record amphibians and their potential spawning waters even in places that are otherwise difficult for scientists to access, such as private gardens.
The project team checks and validates all call recordings received and provides direct feedback on the respective report via the “AmphiApp”. The recorded calls are then used for further bioacoustic studies to close gaps in knowledge about the calling behavior of the green toad. In this way, the researchers also gain important insights into the distribution of amphibians in Austria.
Contakt
Maria Magdalena Krall and Janette Siebert, MSc.
„AmphiBiom - Amphibien erlauschen und Arten schützen!“ is part of the Citizen Science Awards 2025 program organized by OeAD and financed by BMFWF.
