Smartphone Applications

Provides general resources for smartphones applications (apps) to assist in tracking, monitoring various species, including invasive species.

• Mobile Apps
• News

Mobile Apps

Bugwood Apps - Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health Mobile Applications
University of Georgia. Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.
Mobile applications designed to engage users with invasive species, forest health, natural resource and agricultural management.

• Forest Insect Pests in North America: A Photographic Guide
  The photos present in this App are intended to help foresters, urban landscaping employees, or others working with trees recognize some of the common pest insects affecting trees in North America and understand their life cycles and how they damage trees. The information was drawn from book, websites, factsheets, and some original literature.
  
  
• Great Lakes Early Detection Network (GLEDN)
  This apps allows you to use the power of your smart phone to help discover non-native invasive species early in their infestations. The network covers the states of Ohio, New York, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota and Pennsylvania.
  
  
• Invasive Plant Atlas of New England (IPANE)
  This app allows IPANE to become mobile and allow IPANE users to report sightings of invasive plants directly in the field to create a comphrehensive web-accessilbe database of invasive and potentially invasive plants in New England.
  
  
• Invasive Plant Control, Inc. (IPCConnect)
  App for site tracking and management
  
  
• Invasive Plants in Southern Forests: Identification and Management
  This app is based on the U.S. Forest Service publication "A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (2010)." This app provides information on accurate identification of the 56 nonnative plants and groups that are currently invading the forests of the 13 Southern States.
  
  
• Invasive Plants in Southern Forests: Identification and Management
  This app is based on the U.S. Forest Service publication "A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (2010)." This app provides information on accurate identification of the 56 nonnative plants and groups that are currently invading the forests of the 13 Southern States.
  
  
• IveGot1 - Identify and Report Invasive Animals and Plants in Florida
  This app is used to identify and Report Invasive Animals and Plants in Florida. IveGot1 is an integrated invasive species reporting and outreach campaign for Florida that includes the app, a website with direct access to invasive species reporting and a hotline 1-888-IVEGOT1 for instant reports of live animals.
  
  
• Landscape Alternatives
  This app focuses on plant species that are used ornamentally and have become invasive in at least part of the Midwest. Cultivars or hybrids produced from these species may or may not be invasive.
  
  
• Mid-Atlantic Early Detection Network (MAEDN)
  This app is used to document invasive plant occurences in the mid-Atlantic region for the purposes of early detection, improved management and better coordination. The current focus is on invaive plants, but additional invasive insects and diseases have been included in this app. The region includes Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia.
  
  
• Missouri River Watershed Coalition (MRWC) - Early Detection and Distribution Mapping System
  This app provides a means of reporting new sightings of select invasive species. MRWC–EDDMapS focuses on species that are new or potential new invaders to the seven Coalition states (Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Kansas), as well as five other western states (Washington, Oregon, idaho, nevada, and Utah).
  
  
• National Wildlife Refuge
  This app aloows you report invasive plants in National Wildlife Refuges.
  
  
• Outsmart Invasive Species - Massachusetts
  Join the Outsmart Invasive Species Project to help stop the spread of non-native plants and insects that threaten our environment. Help researchers cover more ground by looking for invasive species anytime - whether walking the dog, hiking, fishing, gardening, or working outdoors.
  
  
• Pacific Norhwest Early Detection Network (PNEDN)
  Allows for real time tracking of invasive species occurrences using local and national distribution maps and electronic early detection reporting tools.
  
  
• Stink Bug Scout
  Stink Bug Scout is designed for use by university researchers for making assessments of stink bug populations in fields and across landscapes.
  
  
• Southeast Early Detection Network (SEEDN)
  This app is used to report sightings of invasive plants and other invasive pests in the Southeastern U.S., to better assess the extent of infestations and hopefully eradicate new infestations before they become huge problems (such as kudzu).
  
  
• Texas Invaders
  The Invaders of Texas Citizen Science program collects species observations from volunteer "citizen scientists" trained to use a specially developed Invasive Species Early Detection and Reporting Kit. With this kit, volunteers detect invaders' arrival and dispersal in their own local areas.
  
  
• VegDr
  This is a field guide for vegetable crops with real-time alerts as the extension specialist for the commodity determines there is a need to provide additional information. It will continue to grow to include additional vegetables and problems. Currently this app only focuses on disease management in cucurbit vegetables.
  
  
• What's Invasive!
  A citizen science effort to document invasive plants in our National Parks. The What's Invasive! application for smart phones (Android and iPhone) displays local lists of top invasive plants and/or animals (with images and short descriptions to remind you of what they look like) that have been identified by National Park Service or other invasive management authorities.

Calflora Observer
Calflora.
Application for smart phones (Android and iPhone) that allows you to quickly and efficiently report wild plant occurrences. This application makes it easy for you to report the species name, date, and location of over 10,000 California native and non-native plant taxa. You can also add a photograph to a report, and share it with others later to confirm identification. See YouTube video Weed Mapping Made Easy - An Integrated Plant Mapping System for more information.

Expert Identification System for Broadleaf Weeds of North America
Android Market.
Weed indentification of broadleaf weeds of North America (48 states and Canda), an interactive guide to plant identification provided by XID Services, Inc. This plant identification app (Android only) is for gardeners, landscapers, farmers, botanists, horticulturists, nature-lovers, hikers, ranchers, homeowners – for anyone who has ever wondered, "what is that weed?"

PlantTracker
University of Bristol (United Kingdom).
The PlantTracker app shows you how to identify invassive plant species and enables you to easily submit geo-located photos whenever you find one.

Project Noah
New York University. Interactive Telecommunications Program.
Application for smart phones (Android and iPhone) to explore and document wildlife and a platform to harness the power of citizen scientists everywhere. Project Noah lets you take cell phone pictures of bugs and trees and then sends back an identification of the exact type in as little as 24 hours.

Save Our Citrus - Identify and Report Citrus Diseases
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
California citrus growers and government agricultural officials are relying on backyard gardeners to help contain citrus greening disease in the state. This free iPhone application from USDA makes it easy to report and identify the four leading citrus diseases: citrus greening, citrus canker, citrus black spot and sweet orange scab. Report your symptoms, upload a photo and receive a response back from citrus experts. Make sure your citrus is healthy and help stop the spread of these incredibly destructive citrus diseases!

The Wildlab
Mediated Spaces, Inc.
Use mobile technology to explore, discover, and share the natural world. The iPhone application narrows down the range of potential bird species based on student input.

News (listed by most recent date)

From Mobile Phone to Alien Plant Hunter (Dec 17, 2012)
ScienceDaily; British Ecological Society.
Mobile phone users are being urged to help fight the spread of invasive plants across the UK -- by downloading PlantTracker. The new app has already attracted 7,000 downloads and alerted ecologists to 2,500 sites where key invasive species have been spotted.

Spraying Insecticide? There's an App for That (Nov 8, 2012)
USDA. Agricultural Research Service.

New App Lets You Report Invasive Species (Oct 15, 2012)
Ohio State University Extension.
Ohio State University Extension has released a new app for spotting and tracking invasive species -- non-native organisms such as Asian carps, purple loosestrife and Asian longhorned beetle -- to try to keep them from setting up beachheads and hurting the economy and environment. By using the free Great Lakes Early Detection Network app, a person can take pictures of suspected invasive species -- whether of farm, forest or water -- and upload the pictures and locations for verification. Based on this early warning, scientists can send out alerts, map the spread and figure out a battle plan. The network covers the states of Ohio, New York, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota and Pennsylvania.

Smartphone App Targets Invasive Species (Mar 26, 2012)
The Massachusetts Daily.

US Forest Service Research Used in New, Invasive-plant Software: iPhone Application Helps People Identify Harmful, Nonnative Plants (Feb 22, 2012)
USDA. FS. Southern Research Station.

IPhone App Allows Reporting of Invasive Species in Florida (Dec 16, 2011)
Government Technology.

UGA/Warnell Center Develops Invasive Species Tracking App (Dec 7, 2011)
University of Georgia. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources.

Smartphone App Tracks Invasive Species (Dec 2010)
Mobile Thinkers.

Tracking Alien Species With Smart Phones (Jul 30, 2009)
National Geographic News.
New smart-phone applications may enable the public to help scientists monitor invasive species and collect data in a fraction of the time it normally takes.