Tips for helping with identifications on iNaturalist.

There are several levels of identifications. (these examples are restricted to plants, but in the filter switch off "plants" and add your own group if you want to work on them) (they are restricted to Lower Tokai Park, add your own place in the advanced filter, if you want to do this for another area).
These mainly use the Identification Curator. it opens on the summary page - to start it, click on the first card, and use the > to move through the observations. A video tutorial is at https://vimeo.com/246153496

NB NB NB NB!: Sensitive Species will be an issue, as the observations will be hidden by iNaturalist and will therefore not show up in smaller places (those less than Municipal size). Identification of Sensitive Species within Nature Reserves and land parcels is thus a major problem, and all data (species totals, species lists, observation numbers, etc.) for small reserves will be biased by these data being excluded. Please be aware of this. It may explain why species and observations you know should be in the area, are not showing up.

1. TOP CUT - First Pass
   Firstly, we need to get observations to at least family level so that experts can start reviewing them. Few of our dedicated taxonomists have time to work above family level, and many work mainly at generic level. So the first cut is to look for observations that need to be identified to a lower level.
   Dont worry if you do not recognize these: other people may recognize it immediately and save everyone a lot of work - just leave those that you have no clue about. There is no point in making IDs above Family level, but any comments on what you think are most useful.
   https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identify?reviewed=any&quality_grade=needs_id%2Ccasual&iconic_taxa=Plantae&place_id=125251&lrank=epifamily

2. NEEDS ID - Low Hanging Fruit
   Secondly, we need to focus on those that have been identified to species, but require verification. Please dont agree unless you are 100% certain, or - if the ID was made by an expert - if you are 100% certain that the identifier is certain. It stands to reason that you will only do this for the groups you know and love. To use this add the Family you are interested in to this link. (note this will not show those that you have identified or reviewed that need identification - click the "reviewed" box to see these)
   https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identify?iconic_taxa=Plantae&place_id=125251&hrank=species

3. TACKLING IDENTIFICATIONS - The Big Job
   It is now time to start making identifications. Rather than just mention the obvious tool, let us look at the resources available.
   If you are a generalist, you may just tackle everything. But it makes more sense to batch ones work based on resources. For instance, you may just have SASOL Proteas to hand, so tackle Proteaceae first. Or your favourite group. Working at Family level usually makes sense, but for bigger genera (you may have a monograph or guide or key) you may want to tackle them alone, rather than with other families.
   The ID Curation tool is simply this (remember to add your family in the "species" box):
   https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identify?iconic_taxa=Plantae&place_id=125251

There are three other very useful tools, that I open in different tabs to allow me to quickly check what I am doing (remember in each case to add your family in the species box). Note that these show all the data and are to guide you as to what has or might be found in the area.

3a. The Species List. (This is the same as 3b, but easier on the eye).
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?place_id=125251&verifiable=any&view=species
This shows the species in descending order of seen, using the iconic picture in a nice big format. A very handy quick reference. But it does not include species not observed, but available on checklists for the area. So very useful for common species, but not so good for really rare species.

3b. The Checklist Summary. (This is really useful if your area has historical or independent checklists).
https://www.inaturalist.org/check_lists/982798-Tokai-Park-Check-List?iconic_taxon=47126&view=photo
otherwise it is the same as 1, but in taxonomical order, using other photographs.
The most useful feature of this is that it tells you when the last observation was (if there is one), but if you click the "View All" it shows you all the observations for that species. Very useful if you discover a set of observations that are clearly wrongly identified and you want to review them in this place. Also useful for subspecies - select "Rank=leaves".
Specify your group in the filter on the right where it says "type taxon name"

3c. The Identotron. (The most useful of all).
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identotron?taxon=119510#establishment_means=&order=&place=125251&taxon=47126
This is a mixture of 3a and 3b. It shows all the species (it does not do subspecies), in descending order (or taxonomy if you prefer). But it has several pictures, and a map of where nearby it has been seen. Beware, for large groups of common species this is going to chew bandwidth on pictures and maps - careful with big families in big areas.
You can get this on the ID Curation Tool on the "Suggestions" tab, but having it available as a separate tab is very useful (esp. for large lists of suggestions which chew bandwidth and time that you may want to consult several times).

Species on the Place Checklists that have not been observed yet, will be at the bottom of the list and will have blank maps.

4+. REVIEW - Most Important of All
When all the observations that you can identify are done, it is time to double check. There are many ways of doing this. (in case, remember to add your Family in the species box)
First, just familiarize yourself with what has been recorded. Are there any funny species or genera that should not be there:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?place_id=125251&verifiable=any&view=species
Secondly, quickly scan through the thumbnails looking for suspect IDs
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?order=asc&order_by=votes&place_id=125251&subview=grid&verifiable=any
And then, if you are serious, quickly check each one:
Either only those that you have not yet checked - this is the most logical:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identify?quality_grade=needs_id%2Cresearch%2Ccasual&iconic_taxa=Plantae&place_id=125251
or ideally ALL if you are really serious (or have changed your mind as to what some species are):
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identify?reviewed=any&quality_grade=needs_id%2Cresearch%2Ccasual&iconic_taxa=Plantae&order_by=random&place_id=125251

. . . .

As you can see, comprehensively identifying species is quite a job. But if you tackle your favourite group, and so does everyone else, then it is a painless and fun task for those rainy days - when you cannot be out collecting more data - and long nights - after you have completed your backlog of observations for uploading.
It is also the funnest and most comprehensive way to learn about a group - a genus or family, or a place - somewhere that you care about.

Have fun!!

Posted on November 27, 2019 07:48 AM by tonyrebelo