So I’ve just started identifying and I have a question concerning identification and species ranges. I take issue with the act of identifying cryptic species to species level just because of the location, which is something i’ve seen many identifiers and observers do. I get the temptation - especial…

Another instance when morphology isn’t always helpful but location is is when there are geographic gaps. In the Western Ghats (India), we’re often forced to ID some reptiles down to species almost solely based on location/elevation as different species share some morphological traits that are visibl…

Absolutely no birder in the history of birding has ever distinguished that snipe from every snipe species in the entire world every time they identify one in the field. Okay, maybe you could find one person who does that, but I bet their life list is really short. We all make some reasonable assum…

Hi all, Thank you everyone for your replies! I guess the topic is nuanced and there is no right answer to cover all cases. i appreciate the fun examples, though they aren’t exactly comparable to the case i was thinking of (which I should have specified): For an observation in Czechia , someone ident…

perhaps “In a tortoise shell”? :man_shrugging:

After fires we see too many sad tortoise shells For your linked obs it is the only sp on the checklist.

[image] timo27: I think IDing something based on location defeats the whole purpose of iNaturalist as a citizen science platform, so I’d really like to know what others think about this… Timothy, Have you read through this thread? https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/why-identifying-by-range-is-a…

when you provide an ID, you aren’t saying “this is definitively what this organism is”. That’s not the case with photo ID and it’s not the case with experts in a lab with a specimen in front of them. Rather, when you make an ID you are saying “based on the available evidence and our current understa…

Не вижу проблемы. Когда я вижу наблюдение за растением на клумбе или в горшке я просто прокручиваю предложения ИИ в самый низ и нажимаю на “Включать предложения, не встречающиеся поблизости” - и выбираю из нового списка вид, если он в нём есть) А вот когда другой человек ставит таксон от балды, за…

Like others, I consider location when identifying, with discretion of course. I work with ladybugs and there are many identical species that are broadly separated geographically or by habitat, allowing for reasonable species ID. That said, relying only on distribution can be risky. There are gaps i…

Continuing the discussion from Why identifying ‘by range’ is a problem : [image] Why identifying ‘by range’ is a problem I can’t speak for plants, but for moths, if range were ignored when making IDs, it’s not an exaggeration to say that many if not most of the moths on inat should not be ID’d to…

Identifying based on location

General

AdamWargon May 28, 2026, 4:59pm 11

Timothy,

Have you read through this thread? https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/why-identifying-by-range-is-a-problem/

@petezani started it in 2024. Pete was actually talking about something else:

But the thread turned into a discussion about identifying based on location, and it gathered a lot of thoughtful comments from experienced identifiers.

Topic		Replies	Views
Why identifying ‘by range’ is a problem General	44	1969	October 25, 2024
Choosing not to identify subspecies General	44	5219	March 26, 2019
Etiquette for ID of species with no visual differences General identification , etiquette	157	8861	January 23, 2020
Identifying birds to subspecies without field marks Nature Talk	25	2052	May 9, 2019
ID Based on Range or Appearance General question	23	2697	April 24, 2019

Identifying based on location

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