I have been noticing that some of my older observations have ID recommendations that I missed or overlooked. For example, I went back to look at and old photo and saw that some other user had suggested an ID from 2 years ago. I tried to check every old observation by clicking each individually to find more but this takes so long. I’d like to keep accuracy of my all of the species I’ve seen and I’m sort of confused by observations versus lifelist.
Below is an example I noticed a few minutes ago. Another user suggested the correct ID to my observation about 2 years ago. I wouldn’t have known.
Have you had a look at your notification settings?
I thought that there might be something in notifications, but then I looked at mine and there is only the option to turn off “IDs that agree with yours”. Which makes me think that even if that was turned off you would still be notified of IDs that don’t agree with yours.
Do you regularly check your dashboard, where any new IDs for your observations are shown?
Thank you! I had no idea that existed (and I still don’t know how to find it on my own account - which menu is that in?)
So now I have to go and withdraw a few suggest IDs on my observations!!
Somewhat off-topic, but I’d like to say that please do agree with others’ ID only if you personally can confirm that it is right. I often see situation like on your screen and I believe in part of cases the observers agree because they simply trust the identifier. However, it is good to have two inependent IDs on a Research Grade observation
iNat is a learning curve. For the first Bioblitz I had … so … many notifications! I ignored them all, expecting them to be as ‘meaningless’ as FB Likes. Then I realised there were comments, questions, disagreeing or finer IDs in the notifications morass. (Still waiting patiently for iNat to improve our management of notifications - one person has left in despair!)
Having p*ssed off a few skilled identifers, I now trawl all my notifications every day (42 waiting). Unfollowing obs by obs when I am no longer interested, once I have done my best for that one.
Mavericks link is important, but that only notifies you when you are the last one with wrong ID … meanwhile, it needs 3 right IDs to overturn yours - which you could have withdrawn - then just the usual 2 agree would be needed.
Yes, I did that from the link you had posted. I was just wondering if there was a way to access it from my account? Is it in a menu on iNaturalist, or is the only way to find it by copying your link and changing the username?
Absolutely second that! Was the same I thought about when I saw the example. Please do not just agree with a fine ID, because you would like it to go to RG. If you cannot confidently identify it on your own, you can instead use the finer ID to find and tag someone who can, using the identifier leader board for your area
In the case of the example you linked, where someone else refined but didn’t disagree with your ID, there’s no action you need to take. I understand you like to see the new ID (who doesn’t like to know more about their observations!) but there isn’t anything you need to do … your lifelist will update itself, you don’t need to withdraw your orginal ID since it’s not conflicting, and you shouldn’t agree with the new ID unless your personal knowledge/skill has expanded to the point that you can make that ID yourself.
