How to Get Involved

We are asking volunteers to:

Be a licensed deer hunter in New York State or the broader northeast, and adhere to project guidelines
Follow a set protocol and record a small amount of additional information (e.g., location, general habitat characteristics
Enter survey information on an online data form
Provide the following supplies*
- Motion-activated trail camera (must record date and time)
- Batteries
- Camera strap or mount
- SD card
- Phone or GPS device to mark location
- ~3' metal ground stake (optional)
- Stake(s) to hold down gut pile (optional)
- Camera lock box or rope lock (optional)
Set and leave a camera on a gut pile starting from the time you field dress a deer to a minimum of 2 weeks, or until it is fully scavenged
Retrieve the camera and upload all of the photos from your survey online (do not delete any photos- blank photos are important too!)
Do not change any of your normal hunting activities!

*We have some camera supplies available to loan to volunteers on a first-come, first-served basis. You can let us know the supplies you may need on the sign-up sheet, or contact us directly, and we will try our best to make it happen!

How to contribute a camera survey:

2. Read through the project protocol

3. Set up motion-activated camera on your gut pile & record data

4. Retrieve your trail camera after the gut pile is scavenged

5. Submit survey information online

6. Upload all survey photos to the link provided

If you are not able to submit data online, please contact us and we can provide support for mail-in options.

Download Protocol

2. Record a gut pile scavenging observation

If you leave a gut pile and document that it was (or was not) scavenged without installing a camera, we want to know about it! We will ask the same questions as we would if you installed a camera (see the project protocol), but at a minimum we will need to know:

When and where the gut pile was left
The last time you observed the gut pile intact
When you discovered the gut pile was gone

3. Contribute a gut pile (NY only)

If you harvest a deer in upstate NY, we may be able to use your gut pile for directed research if your harvest coincides with our needs. When you sign up you can choose to be added to our email list of potential gut-pile contributors and we will reach out as-needed.

Enter observation data