# Observations not adding to collection project **URL:** \ **Category:** Bug Reports\ **Tags:** question\ **Created:** [December 22, 2019, 7:12pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820 "2019-12-22T19:12:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![stephen220](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/stephen220/32/2942_2.png) [@stephen220](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/stephen220)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 7:12pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/1 "2019-12-22T19:12:08Z")
Seasons Greetings everyone! I’m having an issue with a collection project I started to collect observations within the watershed of a local creek system. I created a new place using a polygon that follows the boundaries of the watershed in question (“Sligo Creek Watershed”). Then used the new place to set up the collection project: [https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/fauna-and-flora-of-the-sligo-creek-watershed](https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/fauna-and-flora-of-the-sligo-creek-watershed) While the project has collected several thousand observations, I discovered some recent ones of mine that have not been added, despite falling well within the geographic boundaries of the project. For example: [https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36827783](https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36827783) [https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36827780](https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36827780) There also doesn’t seem to be any way to add the missing observations manually. Can someone explain why other observations (including some of mine from the same times and locations) were added but not these? What am I doing wrong?! Thanks in advance Stephen ---
**Author:** ![cmcheatle](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/cmcheatle/32/37_2.png) [@cmcheatle](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/cmcheatle)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 7:22pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/2 "2019-12-22T19:22:52Z")
Any record which is obscured where any part of the obscuring boundary box falls outside the geography defined for a project will not be collected into the project. This is intentional behaviour as a security measure to ensure people can not design projects with small geographies to try and ‘cheat’ their way to defeating the obscuring. ---
**Author:** ![stephen220](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/stephen220/32/2942_2.png) [@stephen220](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/stephen220)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 7:30pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/3 "2019-12-22T19:30:30Z")
Thanks. But does that apply to either of the observations I mentioned? If so, I did not intentionally obscure them. Can the “obscuring” be removed? Apologies if this is a naive question! ---
**Author:** ![cmcheatle](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/cmcheatle/32/37_2.png) [@cmcheatle](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/cmcheatle)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 7:32pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/4 "2019-12-22T19:32:00Z")
No, the species are automatically obscured because of their conservation status. Hermit Thrush are classified as vulnerable and Merlin as Critically endangered in the state. It can not be removed from an observation, nor can the records be manually added to the project. ---
**Author:** ![stephen220](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/stephen220/32/2942_2.png) [@stephen220](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/stephen220)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 7:42pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/5 "2019-12-22T19:42:58Z")
Aha! Thanks for the explanation. I understand the rationale for this, but the outcome is a bit nonsensical in this particular context. Hermit Thrush, for example, may be vulnerable as a breeding species in the state of Maryland (which is why I assume it has the “VU” designation), but it is not the breeding season, and it is a common passage migrant and winter visitor. But I guess that’s a different debate! Thanks again for the patient explanation! ---
**Author:** ![cmcheatle](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/cmcheatle/32/37_2.png) [@cmcheatle](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/cmcheatle)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 7:46pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/6 "2019-12-22T19:46:40Z")
For better or worse the conservation status of birds is almost always tied to their breeding status in the geography. I could walk across the local canal where I live here in winter and not get my feet wet on the backs of ducks that are classed as threatened here in Ontario. ---
**Author:** ![stephen220](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/stephen220/32/2942_2.png) [@stephen220](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/stephen220)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 7:53pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/7 "2019-12-22T19:53:30Z")
Understood. Unfortunately, the net result is that common species are excluded from the project, making it a whole lot less useful and interesting to local observers. C’est la vie. ---
**Author:** ![bouteloua](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/bouteloua/32/1180_2.png) [@bouteloua](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/bouteloua)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2019, 8:04pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/8 "2019-12-22T20:04:49Z")
If you see a taxon that shouldn’t be obscured, go to the taxon page and click Curation, then Flag for curation, and a curator can take a look. I removed the obscuration from hermit thrush. ---
**Author:** ![alexis\_orion](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/alexis_orion/32/30298_2.png) [@alexis\_orion](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/alexis_orion)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 10:46am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/9 "2019-12-23T10:46:25Z")
Weird… this one: [https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36827783](https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36827783) does not seem to be obscured to me, but it’s still not in the project. ---
**Author:** ![reosarevok](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/reosarevok/32/5547_2.png) [@reosarevok](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/reosarevok)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 11:51am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/10 "2019-12-23T11:51:51Z")
It might be needed to edit and save the observation again (even without changing anything) to get it reindexed as part of the project. I had that happen to one of my observations (which was older than the project). ---
**Author:** ![stephen220](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/stephen220/32/2942_2.png) [@stephen220](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/stephen220)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2019, 4:25pm UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/11 "2019-12-23T16:25:54Z")
Thank you! 🙏 I noticed the Hermit Thrush suddenly popped up in the project! 👍 😁 ---
**Author:** ![bouteloua](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.inaturalist.org/bouteloua/32/1180_2.png) [@bouteloua](https://forum.inaturalist.org/u/bouteloua)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2020, 2:36am UTC](https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/observations-not-adding-to-collection-project/8820/12 "2020-01-28T02:36:17Z")