New rank amateur member here. I was wondering if there is value in posting observations of things I know in a general sense or is the point only to post observations of things I don’t know?
For example, I think I know a May Apple when I see one. Is there any point in me making an observation of one? Does this help in a geographic sense? Other sense? Or should I avoid doing this?
I would be comfortable in posting an observation of a generic Trillium because I think I know a Trillium when I see one, but I certainly do not know all the various species.
So I’m just inquiring as to the etiquette and impulse to observe. What should I make an observation of and what should I not make an observation of?
This has been discussed a few times before, but basically you should make observations if you find enjoyment in it. If you find it enjoyable to make an observation of that may apple, go for it. If you want to look at it from a data importance angle, observations of common organisms are also valuable because they can capture baselines and trends.
Or you can totally only make observations of organisms you don’t know if you only want to use iNat for ID help. It’s up to you.
That’s fine, just post it and identify it to the genus level. The community can take a look and add more specific IDs if possible.
Me too. If you are interested in learning to tell the species apart, post what you see, and some iNatters are very kind about explaining why it is, or isn’t, that. iNat can become a learning curve. Sometimes older IDs will shift around with their changing taxonomy.