Wood from the bigleaf maple fetches top dollar, making the trees a natural target for poachers. In fact, it was at the center of a controversial case back in 2015, wherein a sawmill owner admitted that he had suspicions that the logs he was buying weren't legally obtained. Authorities used DNA testing to prove that the logs were indeed taken from a national forest. While the US Forest Service had to gather a team of experts for that incident, this initiative relies on volunteers and citizen scientists.

If you're interested, you'll have to complete a training course online and pass a test to show that you understand how to collect samples. In addition to taking a leaf or a piece of the tree's wood with you, you'll also have to use an app, which asks a number of questions about the specimen, while in the field. The hope is that the samples volunteers collect can serve as vital DNA evidence for any future illegal logging cases.

Norway and the US Forest Service believe that the project could eventually expand to cover more species and more regions around the world. They're planning to launch a similar effort in Indonesia -- they're also eyeing Peru -- where illegal logging is extremely rampant.