Smartphone apps for ecological fieldwork
Random sampling
- Random UX: random number generator with min-max range, random draws from lists, coin toss
Measurement and logging
Physical environment
- Phyphox: view and log all sensor measurements from your phone in real time: temperature, light, sound, accelerometer, barometer… Also provides a wealth of additional sensor-based tools or learning.
- Physics Toolbox Suite: view and log all sensor measurements from your phone in real time: temperature, light, sound, accelerometer, barometer…
Plant traits or habitat
- Plant Screen Mobile: Leaf area index and more. Open access paper: https://plantmethods.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13007-019-0386-z.
- LeafByte: for measuring herbivory and leaf area. Open access supporting paper: https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/2041-210X.13340.
- EasyLeafArea (Android): for measuring leaf area with a scale reference on the picture.
- CanopyCapture: for measuring canopy cover (replaces a densiometer).
Sound recording
- Amazing MP3 Recorder: good for sound recording (not just in MP3, also does high quality Wav). Best with an external microphone.
- RecForge II: good for sound recording (also does high quality Wav). Best with an external microphone.
Taxonomic ID
- Echometer touch: companion app to echo meter bat recording device (one available in the University of Aberdeen zoology teaching pool). Sonagram visualisation + automatic ID.
- Seek: automatic plant ID
- Plantnet: automatic plant ID (as with everything else, treat automatic plant ID with great caution and scepticism!)
- Merlin: maps, visual ID guide and automatic bird sound ID by Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Covers all birds of the World.
Monitoring
Existing programs
- eBird app and eBird website
- iNaturalist
Create own recording forms
- Epicollect5 app: online / offline recording. Form to be created on web interface first (website). Fairly simple interface for simple to more advanced forms.
- Google forms: very simple interface for very basic forms. Online only.
Navigation and mapping
- Google maps: offline capability (check options and settings in the app).
- Navigation (by Google)
- Maverick: online / offline, lots of map backgrounds available. Limited number of waypoints available to record in free version.
- GPS status
Misc.
- Where to watch birds in Scotland App: a good guide by the Scottish Ornithologists’ Club (SOC).
If you can think of good resources that are missing here, please feel free to contribute!