Snapshot Newsletter Menu

Check out the Snapshot Wisconsin Newsletter for exciting news, research updates and volunteer announcements related to the program. New editions of the newsletter are released every two to three months.

Want to get notified when new newsletters come out? Sign up for the following topics on GovDelivery.

Snapshot Wisconsin Trail Camera Project - Sign up for emails about new Snapshot Wisconsin newsletters.

Snapshot Wisconsin Educator's Bulletin - Sign up for emails about using Snapshot in classroom and outreach settings.

June 2023

Research_Content Image_Snapshot Volunteers Schiebenes Family

The Snapshot Wisconsin program is "people-powered research," as ecologist Neil Gilbert describes in our first article, discussing how he used Snapshot data in his recently published wildlife behavior studies. Another story covers how a family of Snapshot volunteers answered the call for bear den reports and had the experience of a lifetime assisting scientists with the den survey!

January 2023

Snapshot team member and an intern smile for the camera, wearing blaze orange as they search for elk calves to collar.

There's a new way that Snapshot data has been used to support wildlife management decisions, this time for Wisconsin's bobcat and fisher populations. The Snapshot team also welcomed an intern during the Summer of 2022. Searching for elk calves, data wrangling and an underwater photoshoot are just a few adventures Mira Johnson had while learning about careers in conservation!

June 2022

In this newsletter, two Snapshot educators share how they get people excited about nature and wildlife monitoring. The Snapshot team also highlights other citizen science programs that might interest our volunteers, and the team announces that the 2021 data is now available on the Wisconsin Data Dashboard!

March 2022

A coyote along a snowy riverbank pauses to look at the camera.

Collaboration is at the heart of the Snapshot Wisconsin program, from working with NASA and UW-Madison to teaming up with Zooniverse daily to consensus classify photos. In this edition, the team sheds light on two lesser-known collaborations and how through these partnerships, Snapshot Wisconsin has been able to contribute to national and international projects.

January 2022

The theme of this edition is the intersection of humor and science. The Snapshot team asked volunteers on the Zooniverse community to share funny captions for some entertaining Snapshot trail camera photos and share them with you here. The team also shares some of their favorites from over the years. Lastly, the time capsule has been assembled and tucked away; see the final contents in the last article.

September 2021

The Snapshot team is building a time capsule that will serve as a "snapshot" of the program today. The group wrote up the story of the program's history, from a backyard experiment to reaching 50 million photos. They also created two new infographics that you don't want to miss. All of these pieces and contributions from our volunteers will be added to the time capsule. Read more about this effort in this edition.

July 2021

Sandhill cranes feeding in Jackson County

This newsletter edition focuses on the birds that appear on Snapshot Wisconsin's trail cameras. Read about a unique collaboration with the Wisconsin Breeding Bird Atlas II and learn more about sandhill cranes in the species highlight. Plus, the Snapshot team announces that the 2020 data is available on the Data Dashboard.

May 2021

Collage of Snapshot Wisconsin's favorite photos out of the first 50 million photos

As a graduate student (who has been with Snapshot Wisconsin for many years) moves on to his next research project, let's look at his research into pairing Snapshot trail camera images with aerial images from space. The Snapshot team also highlights a volunteer and nature center that uses Snapshot photos in their outreach programs.

February 2021

The Snapshot Wisconsin team members are busy compiling a dataset of all the elk photos from the previous calendar year. The research of two important collaborators within the DNR is highlighted in this edition. Both use Snapshot photos from the elk dataset to improve elk monitoring in Wisconsin.

December 2020

Snapshot Wisconsin reached its 50 millionth photo, so the team discusses how images are processed and turned into usable data. Read about a new partnership between the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin and Snapshot Wisconsin.