The Squirrel Census took place in October 2018, when 323 volunteers collected data on all the squirrels in Central Park. To organize the project, the census team divided Central Park into 350 hectares. Each census taker roamed a single hectare for 20 minutes, and they took notes on the squirrels they saw, including:
...and much more.
Manhattan's Central Park
For our project, we wanted to tackle a light-hearted topic that would re-inspire delight in nature, particularly due to the mundane routine of pandemic life.
Thus, we chose to analyze the Squirrel Census.
Join us in learning more about the census takers' delightful experiences and the rambunctious squirrels of Central Park.
When hovering over a story, look at the map to see where it took place.
You can click on the dots!
Squirrel's Primary Fur Color
Squirrel's Reaction to Humans
Time of Sighting
Squirrel Location
Story Category:
Use the drop down to view the effect various categories on sentiment
Where are we getting this data from? We used a sentiment analysis package to better understand the emotions behind the census takers' stories. As you can see, the stories are majorly positive!
We split the data by categories that might affect census taker’s moods, such as observing squirrels vs. other animals. Overall, Accidental Poems are the only class with a noticeable difference, with non-poem stories having 15% more of the total proportion being positive than the Accidental Poems. All the other classes range from 51-58% positive stories, which is a majority. Squirrel stories have 8% more positive proportions than non-squirrel stories.
Instructions: Click on the different words to read a random story. P.S. Some of them are quite amusing!
Now that we've analyzed the census takers' stories, we'll turn to the squirrels themselves - see if you can answer these squirrel trivia questions!
Squirrels who approach or ignore humans have certain patterns of activities, sounds, or tail movements.
Filter:
“Being part of the project is about more than counting squirrels. ...It tunes the person to the environment, and makes you notice things that you otherwise wouldn’t. Listen closely enough, and you can hear [the squirrels] rustling in the bushes, making the “kukking” noise, or crunching on a nut.” - Jamie Allen, Squirrel Census Founder
“Today was a fine day for a squirrel census and I very much appreciated the opportunity -- it was a very peaceful experience. Counting squirrels makes your troubles disappear into nature. Thanks!” - Census Taker
"The friendships that were quickly made. This experience of active meditation. It was like fishing[,] only on land. The notion of watching squirrels while people were inquisitively watching us was fun, like having a secret in an open public forum." - Census Taker
For the census takers, squirrel-watching was peaceful, meditative, and calming. On the next page, you'll get to step into their shoes and learn about what walking through Central Park would be like!
Instructions:
Max # of Squirrels You May See:
Would a Squirrel Approach You?
Walking Distance:
Other Animals You Might See:
Click "Heat Map" to see which hectares have the most squirrels. Then, try clicking on the heat map!
Squirrel Count Legend:
Jada is a senior at Harvard studying Anthropology and CS. More importantly, she is an avid squirrel enthusiast. Hailing from MN, she grew up seeing countless squirrels in her yard!
Lizzy is a sophomore at Harvard studying CS and Statistics. She always enjoys visiting Central Park when in New York City and has gained a new appreciation for squirrels.
Iris is a sophomore at Harvard studying Economics and CS. She is passionate about playing frisbee in parks with her friends while watching squirrels scramble around!
