While I regularly make suggestions to observers, “for future reference, if you want a better ID on this group, you might include these things”, I wonder if there is a way, or better way, for iNaturalist to encourage people to give identifiers more of the identifying features of the plant species the…

I think your original question is one of those false dichotomies – iNat is a community science platform, with all the attendant diversity of desires and priorities entailed in that description. Having spent a lot of time teaching people to identify mushrooms in person, and simultaneously seeing man…

If onboarding could encourage people to take 3 photos of that (new people may think they are only allowed 1 photo = 1 obs) Those who are interested will ask questions or respond to comments later. But 3 varied photos should / could give flower, leaf, whole plant - more hope of seeing the definitiv…

Maybe onboarding could include phrasing like this: “While you of course will have limits to how much you can show, in the number of photos, or other kinds of information you can give in your observation, know that the identifying features of a plant, animal, or fungus can occur on that plant, anima…

I found a note, after my first comment, that my issue had been “solved”. While I made later edits to my original title, and my first comment, to clarify that I am asking how iNaturalist could do better, and that response after that first comment, that my issue had been “solved”, might, in part, ref…

I created a feature request for a popup prompt that would help people learn what to take photos of once a taxon is selected. https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/add-an-optional-photo-prompt-to-the-new-observation-screen-in-the-apps/13471 It would be a fair amount of work to figure out the right terms f…

As an identifier of moths (sounds like the name of a novel - The Identifier of Moths), I have gotten used to purple photos, blurred photos, underside photos. Often the significant features are visible no mater what the photo condition, even if it is just to Genus. I will let the observer know if I c…

I wish the species description had those notes so I would know what I need to include in my pictures. I have learned that pictures of insects often need a full view of each of the legs on one side, but there is so much I don’t know, and most of my inadequate photos just never get an id, let alone a …

I think other apps do a better job with guiding people. For example in PlantNet you tell the app which part of the plant you took a photo of (leaf/flower/stem). I must say that I am impressed with iNaturalist’s algorithm that can usually quite well distinguish things without this classification. Bu…

Given how many plant species there are and how often the details needed for identification are specific to a particular genus and location, I think realistically all iNaturalist could do is provide some general guidance and encourage taking additional pictures that show more than just a flower or a …

“popup prompt that would help people learn what to take photos of once a taxon is selected” This pop-up idea sounds interesting! I am mostly a photographer, not very good at IDing living beings, and I often don’t know if I need to take more pictures, what I should photograph to help IDers, or if my…

I would post photos of prairie plants and would include three photos - flower, leaf/stem, and the whole plant. But, I was just told recently by someone else that the back of the flower is also very important, so I’ll be including that as a fourth picture. BUT I wish iNat would have been able to let …

Could iNaturalist better help observers use this as a forum for good plant ID (and other kingdoms), and less a place to just post their pretty flower pictures?

General

Topic		Replies	Views
Helpful Tips and Resources for Beginner (Plant) iNatters AND Common Beginner Mistakes Tutorials	50	9357	June 10, 2026
Where are all the plant lovers? General	72	3488	September 21, 2022
How to encourage users to take more and better photos General	67	2624	January 10, 2024
Little interaction by the community General question	54	4878	November 18, 2021
Encouraging users to upload more than just one photo General	53	2592	November 15, 2022

Could iNaturalist better help observers use this as a forum for good plant ID (and other kingdoms), and less a place to just post their pretty flower pictures?

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