“we clearly need help with Iris, Quercus, and Lupinus” plus Dandelions – true but at least in my area, those all have serious taxonomic and/or identification problems. Taxonomic hell holes, even. And sometimes the depth of the taxonomic quicksand varies by location. Here in Oregon, there’s only one Banana Slug (except maybe in the far SW corner). In California, there are several and they can’t be identified from photos, though sometimes by range. (How do I know about the slug confusion in California? Guess.)
My advice would be: Can you recognize a plant, insect, mollusc, or fungus in your area? Set the filters for that taxon in your area and start sending “Needs ID” observations to RG – and sometimes weeding out photos of something misidentified as your organism. Pull up a higher taxonomic level* in your area; can you pick out your chosen organism from the many photos? You will gradually expand your knowledge.
What if you make a mistake? Duh. If you identify, you’ll make mistakes. I should know – I’ve made literally thousands of them. Just withdraw your ID (if you agree that you’re wrong), maybe learn something (or not), and move on.
- (If you look at the Taxon page for your organism, you can click on the Taxonomy tab and see the whole list of taxonomic groups that contain it.)