Finding Pikas

Volunteers hike a trail up Longs Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park. They stop at an elevation of around 10,000 feet to look for signs of a small, hamster-like mammal called the American pika. These citizen scientists scour the slopes for poop and hay piles the animals stash to eat over the winter. They also listen for pikas’ high-pitched chirps. These clues tell the volunteers that the pikas either were there or are still living in the area.

Each summer, 400 volunteers ages 8 to 80 join the Colorado Pika Project. They visit 186 sites across the state. Back in 2010, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service considered adding the American pika to the endangered species list. But there wasn’t enough data to determine the animals’ status. So the Denver Zoo and the nonprofit Rocky Mountain Wild started the Colorado Pika Project to collect data on the species.

Not only does this help scientists learn about pikas, but it also helps researchers understand how climate change is affecting the region. American pikas are an indicator species, which are organisms that can show researchers if an ecosystem is healthy or not.

Volunteers hike up a steep trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. They stop at an elevation of around 10,000 feet. These citizen scientists are looking for signs of a small, hamster-like mammal called the American pika. They scan the slopes for pika poop and the piles of hay the animals use as winter food stores. They also listen for pikas’ high-pitched chirps. These clues tell the volunteers that pikas have been in the area.

Every summer, 400 volunteers join the Colorado Pika Project. They range in age from 8 to 80. The volunteers visit 186 sites across Colorado to look for pikas. Their goal: collect as much data as they can on the species. Back in 2010, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service considered protecting the American pika by declaring it an endangered species. But there wasn’t enough information about how many of the animals actually lived in the wild.

The Colorado Pika Project helps scientists learn about the pika population. But it also helps researchers understand something bigger: how climate change is affecting the Rocky Mountain region. American pikas are what scientists call an “indicator species.” That means their numbers are an important signal of whether the ecosystem is healthy or not.