Honors Student Develops App to Aid in Data Collection

Farquhar Honors College student Rose Leeger has developed an app that optimizes the data collection process for researchers in the field. The app, called “Everglades Research for Mosquitofish Data Collection,” allows researchers to upload pictures and input data into premade categories for a more efficient and accurate method of data collection.

Leeger, a junior triple majoring in Marine Biology, Environmental Science, and Biology, created the app using software on ESRI’s ArcGIS system as part of her final project in her Geographic Information Systems course. The app has proven to be a handy alternative to the waterproof paper and pencils previously used in the field, allowing Leeger and her peers to conveniently collect and organize data on their phones. This data is then uploaded to an online data collection system that makes it easy for them to locate past data and identify trends in their research.

“I was able to save time and allow for more thorough research and data collection to be done,” said Leeger, who is currently using the app to collect data for her Honors thesis analyzing the distribution of biologically vulnerable mangrove mosquitofish and its relation to climate change and human activity in the Everglades.

Leeger plans to continue pursuing her passion for marine environment conservation by getting her Ph.D. to become a professor who can inspire future generations to do the same.

Posted 12/12/21