Long unobserved and recently discovered: towards a better understanding of protected‐area species dynamics using curated species lists

Protected areas are designed to shield populations from harmful human impacts. However, in the face of global climate change, a static approach to conservation within these areas is neither feasible nor desirable. One key measure of ecological change at this scale is the arrival of new species and the local extinction of others. Despite strong interest from both scientists and land managers, reliably tracking these dynamics for diverse groups has remained out of reach – until now. The rise of large‐scale data collection by citizen scientists within protected areas presents a powerful new opportunity to revisit and redefine conservation goals. By integrating citizen science observations with herbarium collections, we developed dynamic plant species lists for two of the oldest and most thoroughly documented national parks: Royal National Park (Australia) and Yosemite National Park (USA). While these parks are exceptionally data rich, the framework we present will be increasingly applicable to other protected areas as citizen science efforts continue to expand globally.