McShea’s mammal survey is part of a larger research effort by government agencies, universities, conservation groups, and individual scientists to monitor environmental trends along the entire 2175 miles of the Appalachian Trail. Both the mammal survey and the larger Appalachian Trail MEGA-Transect (as in “MainE-toGeorgiA”) project depend on citizen scientists like Helms, who is a retired accountant and chief financial officer.