The great article posted earlier by @ram_k lists “Seven reasons to contribute to iNaturalist as an identifier.” Which one do you identify with the most?
I think the list misses the educational aspect – you can improve your (preferred organism group here) identification skills: developing new ones and keeping your old ones from getting rusty,
That fits under “You can partake in dynamic, real-time interactions around the world” according to the paper’s descriptions
Discussing identifications is a way of honing and expanding your own skills, including the opportunity for more experienced experts to validate the identifications of less-experienced experts, training the next generation of identifiers.
I voted for the reason I started using iNat, which is the ready-made data collection infrastructure, but both the “broader audience” and the “real-time interactions” parts are also very important to me. As someone who researches broad patterns of natural history but doesn’t have the time (or the budget) to travel everywhere with potentially interesting organisms, identifying my taxa of interest (caterpillars) is a great way to get that information. Plus it’s just fun!
Correcting people on the internet is fun, and this is a productive way of doing that. :P
I also get to learn more about how to identify the group of organisms, which is enjoyable.
But being able to use my knowledge to help people is also very fulfilling and the most motivating.
Sooo i guess i wish i could vote for a couple of them. I picked RT discussion due to the clarification in thread and i guess thats it. Participation in ID process is certainly growing my knowledge base and i enjoy teaching others what I know too.
I voted for enjoying myself, as this in my opinion includes most of the topics, including one of the most important reasons for me - learning. More about what I myself observe by IDing stuff from others… And giving back what I like to get from the community
Ultimately - pay it forward. The 2 people who lead our weekly Fynbos Rambles have taught me so much - in nature, with real plants, thru the seasons - bud flower fruit. Once #GSB22 deadline 14 November is done and dusted (I have 3K plants to skim). I will go back to - paying it forward - identifying Unknowns. First my easy familiars on the Cape Peninsula, then trying to help Western Cape beyond the busy city, and whatever I can for Rest of Africa beyond our border where the need is as vast as Africa herself (see the Peters projection ;~)).
PS I also enjoy the challenge of tracking down the right identifiers to move an obs from Unknown all the way to - we nearly have CID - who can I haul in for the One More Please casting vote. And the reality check of this higher ID is as good as it can be, for now. Partners somewhere between chess strategy, and graceful choreography.
I agree. The thing is, the article is aimed at people who are already experts in their fields, not at us learners-on-the-job. Mind you, experts never stop learning either :)
My reason for being an identifier is to improve machine learning identification for spiders, but that doesn’t seem to be an option. I guess the closest is “Your contributions increase knowledge of biodiversity”.
