Dancing Marsh Chronolog

bridge leading over water, shore on other side shows trees with reds, yellows, and green showing that its Fall.
Popes Creek Bridge in the fall

NPS / Girimont

The Dancing Marsh is a dynamic wetland environment and home to a variety of plants and aquatic animals. These coastal environments are under constant threat from shoreline erosion, sea level rise, increasingly severe storms, and the unintentional negative impact of invasive species. Because of the ebb and flow of daily tides, the Dancing Marsh may look entirely different each time you visit.

Have you ever wondered how these fragile ecosystems might change over long periods of time? It can be hard to track what changes are occurring over the years, and collecting the data can be a massive undertaking. Thankfully, technology has made it possible for citizen scientists to collect and send this data over time through crowdsourcing. In partnership with Chronolog, you can help us capture and track the ecological changes that are occurring and measure the overall health of the Dancing Marsh. All you need to be a citizen scientist is a cell phone!

 
bridge above water, a plastic holder for a phone sits a top of the bridge railing. Below is a sign for the Chronolog station. Overlooking a shore line and treese
Chronolog station located on Popes Creek bridge overlooking the Dancing Marsh

NPS / Cleo Kantz-Schultz


How To Use The Chronolog Station

1. Find our Chronolog station located at the Popes Creek Bridge in the Memorial Area.
2. Open your camera app on your cell phone.
3. Place your phone on the Chronolog Station, following the directions on the sign. **Do not let go of your phone. The station does not secure your device in place. If you let go while you are taking a picture, your phone may fall into the water.
4. After you've taken a photo, follow the prompts on the Chronolog sign on how to submit your photo via email.
5. Congratulations! You've helped catalog a moment in time and provided data for the park on the Dancing Marsh. Photos are compiled into a timelapse to view changes in the Dancing Marsh.

View the citizen science timelapse of the Dancing Marsh here!

Last updated: April 16, 2024

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Contact Info

Mailing Address:

1732 Popes Creek Road
Colonial Beach, VA 22443

Phone:

804 224-1732 x227

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