Citizen science has established itself as an important approach to the co-production of knowledge and public participation in scientific research. Combined with digital technologies and online tools, the approach has been celebrated as a path toward the democratization of science. However, only a few studies have investigated the role digital technologies play in shaping interactions between people and nature. Additionally, the role of context in shaping online and face-to-face participation in citizen science projects has yet to receive much attention. This article takes a citizen science initiative in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest in the state of São Paulo as an illustrative case of the emergence of unanticipated consequences of digital technologies. The emergence of a socio-material practice of animal identification through a popular instant-messaging app is described, allowing a better understanding of the role of digital technologies and the context framing citizen participation in challenging environments.

Here we report two cases of defensive behavior known as “stiff-legged”, unprecedented for the species Rhinella bergi and R. mirandaribeiroi. We registered the behavior at localities in Mato Grosso do Sul and Minas Gerais states, Brazil. With our records, there are now five species from open areas that exhibit this behavior. We assume that the species that inhabit these areas exhibit this avoiding predation behavior simulating a dead body on the ground, behavior known as “death feigning”, unlike forest species, which use this strategy to camouflage themselves between the leaves.

Este estudo apresenta o levantamento de répteis da região do Campus Lagoa do Sino da Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCar), compreendendo os municípios de Angatuba, Buri e Campina do Monte Alegre. Os registros provêm de dados secundários, obtidos na literatura, e de dados primários acumulados entre março de 2017 e setembro de 2019 através de busca ativa (BA), encontros ocasionais (EO), registros feitos por terceiros (RT) e armadilhas aquáticas do tipo covo (AC). Um total de 62 espécies foram registradas (38 através de dados primários), distribuídas entre as Ordens Crocodylia (1), Squamata (58) e Testudines (3). As espécies mais comuns foram as serpentes Boa constrictor, Dipsas mikanii e Crotalus durissus. A riqueza registrada até agora na área de estudo corresponde a 29,2% das 212 espécies de répteis conhecidas para o Estado de São Paulo, mas os estimadores de riqueza sugerem que esta riqueza pode ser ainda maior.