@cthawley you might want to edit this part.
Looked like a typo to me. “its”
Maybe, but where are those additional definitions? If they’ve just been talked about, but haven’t made it into the official documentation, then they don’t clear up anything for the average user. The fact that this gets brought up so commonly is proof that the definitions are not completely clear, and need to be improved or expanded on. It would be pretty easy for iNat to clarify if it intends animals deliberately released into the wild to immediately count as wild, or if intended “free living” semi-cared for animals like bison on a preserve to count as wild.
And to be clear though, I’m not just advocating for better definitions, but better words. If an animal being held captive can be considered wild, and a plant living in the wild can be considered captive, then the words themselves are part of the problem..
Hello all,
I have another edge case. Let me know if it should be in a different thread instead.
I observed a seedling P.strobus in Connecticut, which is a native species of pine tree. It germinated in a flowerpot, unintended (which would be clearly wild). BUT, I then was happy I got one for free, but not there, so I moved it to a nearby site and replanted it. After I’ve replanted it, the only maintainence I do is removing invasive species and gentle watering of the area - if a native pest were to take it down, I’d accept that as valid herbivory for the area and respect the ecological pressure.
I assume this observation should be marked wild, since it’s a similar level of aid to birds at a birdfeeder? But I personally did replant it, so is it cultivated? I’d love to hear opinions.
Planted individuals are considered “not wild” on iNaturalist.
Do the photo and location represent before or after planting? That makes the difference.
Interesting - this rule would apply even in a setting where it’s a native species being replanted in a natural area, such as the woods, and it’s (almost entirely) left to its own devices again?
A similar situation is like a “catch and release” for an animal that wandered into suburban area and was relocated.
correct
iNat’s definition of “wild” is based on observations primarily representing occurrence data (a species is present at a particular place at a particular time). Observations are not considered wild if the presence of the organism at that place and time was intended by humans.
Because a plant cannot relocate itself somewhere else once it has been planted, the criteria for plants are a bit different than for animals. An animal that is taken somewhere and released can choose to stay long-term in the vicinity of the site where it was released (this would be the argument for treating biocontrol insects as “wild” – though the fact that humans intend them to stay there would push this towards captive/cultivated). However, a plant cannot normally leave by its own power even if it wants to; so once planted, that particular individual will always be “captive/cultivated”. Its offspring, however, may be wild, depending on whether reproduction at that particular place is intended or not and whether the offspring are cared for.
Yes. Now that you have determined the location and time of the plant by planting it in its location, it is “not wild” (and will be in perpetuity).
For a catch and release - yes, if the animal is documented exiting the trap where a human is releasing it, it would be captive/not wild (despite being just released from captivity in another sense) because its presence at that time and place has been determined by a human. If the released animal is observed again in the same location it was released after some period of intervening time, users will have to make a judgment call as to whether the animal is there because it intended to be or because it is still there primarily due to human intervention.
I wouldn’t call this another edge case. This has had threads of its own.
When is a plant no longer considered “cultivated?” - Nature Talk - iNaturalist Community Forum
Wild or cultivated - where to draw the line - General - iNaturalist Community Forum
Cultivated, Wild, Escaped, Unsure? - General - iNaturalist Community Forum
These are only the most relevant of many, many threads.