Get Involved in the Dragonfly Mercury Project

DMP volunteers observe dragonfly larvae with NPS staff at Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (Alaska).

NPS Photo

What does it mean to get involved in the Dragonfly Mercury Project (DMP)? It all starts with people and parks!

Do you want to help collect dragonfly larvae in a beautiful national park? Interested people might include:

• National park, forest, or refuge managers
• Students, teachers, and professional researchers
• Science communicators and interpreters
• Volunteers, or any member of the community!

Citizen scientists and community volunteers have been involved in the DMP for over a decade. They help collect dragonfly larvae in national parks and other protected areas all over the United States. DMP participants get to experience parks like never before, while contributing real data to an important scientific study. Dragonfly mercury data help policy makers and resource managers make informed decisions to protect human and wildlife health.

Connect With Us!

Email us to learn more, connect with a park, or make a plan. There are many ways to get involved with the DMP. Read below for some options on where to start.

Become a Citizen Scientist

Citizen scientists for the DMP get the unique opportunity to wear waders and get wet collecting dragonfly larvae, identifying them, recording observations, and learning about threats to park resources. Check out some videos of past participants sampling.

Get your feet wet – use these links to connect with a nearby National Park Service unit that may be participating in the DMP. If they aren't already participating, they might be interested!

• Find a Park
• Find a National Natural Landmark
• Find a Wild & Scenic River

Parks can also be found in your backyard. Friends groups or resource managers for areas outside the National Park Service are welcome to join the effort. E-mail the DMP with questions – we can point you toward where and how to get involved.

An American Conservation Experience intern works with DMP volunteers at New River Gorge National Park and Preserve (West Virginia).

NPS Photo/Lisa Wilson

Collaborate as a Partner

The DMP’s multi-leveled approach benefits diverse partners with different interests and capacities. Interested groups might include federal and state agencies, local communities, resource managers, and subsistence and recreational fish consumers. Working with a variety of partners expands the DMP's capabilities and helps agencies achieve shared goals. Together, we advance our missions focused on natural resource management, environmental protection, science, and public engagement. The DMP helps protect natural resources and the people who enjoy them from mercury exposure. We invite you to help us achieve that goal: Visit the DMP Prospectus for more information.

Integrate a Monitoring Plan

Park managers can use the Protocol Implementation Plan to develop a strategy for resource protection. The protocol outlines a framework for monitoring mercury in dragonfly larvae, providing detail about data collection and more. These methods can be useful for designing public events, resource management plans, and long-term monitoring programs.

Use the Data

In addition to actively engaging in dragonfly collections at a park, even those at home can download and utilize DMP data for their own exploration. Click below to:

• Interact with the Data Visualization Dashboard and explore a map of DMP sites and data charts.
• Discover data sorted by habitat, ecoregion, dragonfly family, and more on this interactive StoryMap.
• Download the project data to investigate your own scientific questions.
• Delve into the details creating dragonfly mercury data graphs and creating hypotheses about the data.
• View photos of dragonfly larvae collected from parks and add your own observations on iNaturalist.
• Visit this distance-learning page for ideas on how to engage in the DMP from home.

Develop Communication and Educational Materials

Do you have ideas for communication, outreach, and/or educational products? Email us to collaborate! To learn what we've been working on, see the final workshop report on Communicating the Science of the Dragonfly Mercury Project.

The DMP is a true collaboration involving park staff, interns, and volunteers at Indiana Dunes National Park (Indiana).

NPS Photo

Find Us on Social Media

Follow our adventures on Facebook (@Six-Legged Scouts in the National Parks) and Instagram (@NatureNPS and #dragonflymercuryproject). Share your own photos and stories, and tag us!