Kinda fun, but I think it tends to promote the impression that the more travel time/budget you have, the more you have ’achieved’ as an iNatter. I think folks who achieve incredible species counts in a limited home range are more laudable, if diversity recognition is considered more valuable.
I mean, if I could afford things like trips to the Galapagos, orr whale watching expeditions, great. But does that make me necessarily any better than someone who spots 10 times the number of species that I’ve seen in my local parks? I don’t think so.
And to a certain extent, I think the same class distinction problem exists with gear. I’ve seen some incredible stuff from phone users, but it’s hard for them to compete with massive telephotos and lab grade microscopes.
Maybe we need to recognize the diversity of resources, and those who have pushed the boundaries of the most financially accessible equipment.
Also – how about a community contribution field? I mean, outside the under-appreciated mega efforts of the IDer crowd. Volunteering and environmental activism. Educators. How do we identify and cheer on that crowd of great and very important sources of inspiration?