Everyone agrees on ID but won't make it to RG

General
1

Hi, please take a look at this: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/43878274

Why it isnt a RG observation? Thanks in advance
LR

2

In the Data Quality Assessment section at the very bottom of the page, several people have marked it as requiring future community confirmation/improvement. If you disagree with that assessment, you can check the box next to “No, it’s as good as it can be”.

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3

Thanks!

4

This is because there are four accepted subspecies of Myiopsitta monachus and this one is not identified as far as it should be possible to take it.

5

That brings up an interesting problem. Good practice to point out when IDs can be taken further, but results in solid species-level IDs not being research grade unless someone comes along who can ID subspecies even though that is not what happens when that box is ignored.

6

A comment / questions on this:

  • I’m not sure using that tool to mark something because it is not at subspecies is a great choice, especially since (currently) users get no notification it has been done. It also infers the end goal of every observation of a species with subspecies/varieties etc should be identification to that level and any one not there is incomplete. I’m not sure that is a standard we should be aiming for.
7

Given that many polytypic species have intergrade zones, and many others can’t be reliably identified to subspecies outside their known breeding ranges, I have to agree – ID to subspecies shouldn’t be the standard, since many individuals simply can’t be ID’d to that point.

8

The checkbox specifically says “can the community ID be improved” - that doesn’t suggest that a more specific ID is the ultimate goal of any observation, but it means that “it could be identified to subspecies” is a valid reason to say yes.

It also means that “the subspecies cannot be determined from the given evidence” is a valid reason to say no, even if there are subspecies of the current species-level ID.

9

If you believe you can ID it to subspecies, then enter the ID, but if you can’t then I don’t think removing it from research grade, especially given users are not notified is a good idea.

10

Maybe it would be more effective to add a comment or something else, but it seems to be a perfectly valid use of that DQA item.