I will be attending an Entomological Collections Network annual meeting very soon. Lots of specialists will attend, who are museum curators and academic folks. I instigated an INaturalist symposium, and we’ll have 4 speakers including me. In my presentation, I’ll speak about why specialists should make an effort to get into iNat identifications, and be involved. I have my own ideas about the subject, but I’d be interested to know what all you folks think! Looking for ideas to build into my presentation…
TIA Ingolf
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I do a lot of identifications of taxa that I either currently study, or am aiming to study in a postdoc project I am planning. by and large, this is to improve by myself the GBIF data I will be using: most of the points one can download for biogeographic analyses are taken from there, and it is absolutely critical to eliminate or help change points that have erroneous captive/cultivated status, incorrect coordinates, or of course above all incorrect taxonomic identification. contrary to layperson expectations, it is very difficult to filter for these in any automatic way from GBIF output, and practically impossible to manually inspect large datasets only after download. iNaturalist is such a major source of taxon coordinate data that it is convenient and efficient to work on data quality from this end of it, even if it then takes a little while for it to upload to GBIF with the new information.
I have also learned a lot about real wild-organism variation in the natural populations from iNaturalist photo vouchers that I never would have realized from museum collections alone! of course specimens are irreplaceable, and I’ve successfully convinced several people I know through iNaturalist to collect those also, which is great. but almost all of those are then associated with in vivo pictures, and that helps generate a more complete understanding of how the organism grew.
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This paper by @thebeachcomber and many others makes a case for it: https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/paper-about-inaturalist-the-benefits-of-contributing-to-the-citizen-science-platform-inaturalist-as-an-identifier/37191
I also interviewed thebeachcomber about it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YM8D63h35LM
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There’s also this story about a new species discovered in Ecuador via iNat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBknt_99w5U
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As a PhD student who’s spent years working as an environmental educator, I would argue that the engagement potential of experts participating in the iNat process is immense. A lot of expertise can feel out of reach to non-professionals. Direct discussion is an incredible way to break down these barriers and the behavior/perspectives modeled by experts can be its own learning tool (I’ve certainly learned an incredible amount over the years from other identifiers on iNat!).
There are many reasons for experts to engage for data quality and other professional reasons. But I feel it’s important to note that the influence of active members of this community also extend far beyond the individual’s direct interests 
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As a lay person I completely agree!! I have learned so so much from some of the experts here. Some have shared resources and ID guides, others have pointed out how tos or how they came to an ID. It truly is an awesome community.
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first, fantastic work organising this, I think it’s a critical element of iNat engagement; getting experts to understand that contributing to iNat is not just a one-way alley, and that there are many many benefits they can reap themselves, is core to getting more of them onboard. This is one of the core themes of a lot of my research, including my PhD, and the focus of much of my iNat outreach and regular workshops that I deliver
There are so many different things to cover, but most of these will be covered by others in this thread (or have already been covered in comments above), so I’ll just focus on three:
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Quite relevant from an insect perspective, iNaturalist is increasingly becoming a prolific source of records of undescribed species. But in most cases, the significance of these records can only be realised/appreciated if a specialist is looking at them. So by using iNat, experts basically get access to a buffet of brand new species getting posted to the site every day, which they can then follow up by visiting the site themselves, asking observers to collect specimens for them, etc. For example, here’s a stiletto fly I uploaded a number of years ago: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/37505882. Not only is it undescribed, it apparently is not even represented by any (known) specimens in any collection. A second (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/192024505) recently got posted as well, from a couple of hundred kilometres away, and we now have both males and females.
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iNaturalist is a powerful facilitator of discourse and collaborations. Specialists from opposite sides of the globe can discuss interesting records with each other, on the records themselves, in effectively real time. In many cases, these discussions occur between two specialists who have never met each other, have never even heard of each other, but then go on to collaborate, write papers together, do fieldwork together, etc., stemming from their interactions on iNat.
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Across the many specialists I interact with, one of the most common misgivings the more iNat-sceptic people have is that iNat represents a tsunami of misIDed records, and that any work they do will just be battered by a relentless onslaught of new misIDs or low quality data flooding in every day. This is then used as a justification to not engage with the platform, as their perception is that they cannot possibly dedicate the time required to get on top of these problems, esp. for taxa that may have fallen victim to AI-initiated positive feedback loops of misIDs. But there’s an extremely important point to make here that many people gloss over/that is not mentioned as much as it needs to be. Here is an exclusive sneak peek at a segment of text from one of my papers that’s in review right now:
When an expert corrects a record, the obvious, immediate outcome is that a single misidentification is rectified, and current identification accuracy increases by one unit. However, citizen scientists learn from their interactions with expert contributors (Kosmala et al. 2016, Mesaglio and Callaghan 2021), and thus each corrected record serves as a teaching point and has an echo effect into the future, such that many hypothetical future misidentifications are prevented, or at least minimised, based on the new knowledge created via a single expert correction.
So here, the key takeaway is that specialists should get involved because even a small number of IDs from a single person can have a disproportionate, positive impact on data quality, not just now, but into the future.
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I discovered a new species using iNat. And am involved in describing another new species discovered by an iNat user. Right here in the U.S. none-the-less. Specialists who are not on iNaturalist will be missing out on a lot of action. And a third study wouldn’t have nearly as much evidence supporting the conclusions without iNat observations (and identifications from specialists) because the number of iNat observations of the species involved greatly outnumber those in museum collections–and I didn’t have to travel around the country to actually see the specimens: https://jhr.pensoft.net/article/132937/ (see fig. 2A)
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First I would introduce iNaturalist and talk about why it’s important. Including various reasons, these are some I can think of…
Crowdsourced Data Collection:
iNaturalist harnesses the power of citizen science, allowing thousands of individuals to contribute valuable observations of species around the globe.
Biodiversity Monitoring:
iNaturalist provides valuable data about species distributions and abundance, which is crucial for conservation efforts and understanding ecosystem health.
Accessibility of Data:
The data collected is accessible to researchers and conservationists. This data can be used to monitor species distributions, which is especially useful when organisms expand or decrease their ranges. The data can also be used to monitor the spread of invasive species, and the decline of endangered species populations.
Educational Opportunities:
iNaturalist serves as an educational tool, promoting awareness and appreciation of biodiversity among the general public, which can inspire future conservationists. It is also a very useful tool for those who appreciate the natural world who might want to learn more about the organisms they live alongside.
Global Reach:
iNaturalist is easily accessible, meaning that users from across the globe, even under-researched regions can contribute to science. Some areas may host species which are understudied or even unknown to science, however due to documentation of their locations scientists can study them further or even scientifically describe them. (I would use examples such as when the iNaturalist user abigaildt photographed a butterfly new to science, which was later scientifically described.)
Then I would talk about why taxon specialists should use iNaturalist. I’d give examples such as:
Greater Capacity for Identification:
By specialists reviewing and identifying observations, these experts can refine the AI’s accuracy and improve species identification for future users, which creates a domino effect that enhances the platform’s utility. This ensures new accurately identified observations can be documented and contribute to science, long after the initial specialist who had helped train the AI are gone.
Data Quality Improvement:
Experts can contribute their knowledge to identify, verify and correct species identifications which ensures improved data accuracy. This is especially important for taxa that may lack information or online ID guides as those species are more likely to be beyond the capabilities of regular users.
Networking and Collaboration:
Engaging with the iNaturalist community allows taxon specialists to connect with other scientists, educators, and citizen scientists, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange. Taxon specialists can also collaborate to discuss and refine identifications of the taxa they specialize in, sharing insights and pooling knowledge.
Access to Diverse Data:
iNaturalist boasts a vast and revolutionary dataset that would not be possible through traditional research channels. Experts can discover new occurrences, population trends, and even species interactions for free.
Contributing to Citizen Science:
By participating in the identification process, experts can help educate non-experts, fostering a culture of scientific inquiry and conservation awareness.
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In addition to all the wonderful things already said, I’d stress that iNaturalist is one of the nicest places on the internet. It’s also a great tool for training the next generation of naturalists before they get pulled into other careers.
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I am not a ‘specialist’ by any stretch of the imagination, although I do have a handy level of knowledge in certain areas. Enough, e.g. to successfully challenge the odd mis-identification. However, please, please, please do encourage more specialists!!! I have learned so much from the specialists.
I see so many of what look like gung ho identifications on iNat but know I’m not knowledgable enough to give a good challenge, so I let them slide by i.e. refrain from suggesting an alternative ID, and then feel a tad guilty about that. If more experts were combing the observations, I reckon RG would be reached so much faster. I’ve found that my birds and mammals get RG almost instantly coz the average joe knows enough to agree with my ID; but my native Aussie plants can sit there for months and months before someone is prepared to add their ID to it, even comparatively mundane species. We sure need a heap more plant and insect specialists on board.
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An expert is able to help more within a day than our whole community in 5 years. @kesramdhan identified the same day several of my unidentified observations in Mauritius, “unlocking” the identification of several species.
See for instance these 4 observations of the same species:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36223738
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36137055
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36136660
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/36127471
Note that the flower color (white) in the 1st observation is not the same as the color (yellow) in the cover photo of the taxon page, which prevents someone with insufficient knowledge to find the match, even if checking all species in the region.
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My main argument would be pretty similar to Beachcomber’s. The iNaturalist records get into other databases (e.g. GBIF) whether they are correct or not. It is more efficient to correct errors at source than to repeatedly fish them out downstream. Correct identifications on iNaturalist help the rest of us get things right.
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It also benefits the economy as a whole, by sparing companies the hassle and costs of employing in-house naturalists - iNaturalist is a great supplier of free expert work.
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What might fit here (a bit provocative, I know) are the many articles about un-funded or under-funded conservation work, like this, this or this one. Another read that fits might be this one on the Silent Extinction of Species and Taxonomists .
(I just copied that from another post in the forum in another topic [with @ DianaStuder , @ wdvanhem and others] which is unlisted now, since it was a too specific case, but the general discussion from it woulf feed in here)
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I thought I recently saw someone questioning whether this was a fair use of iNat, in regards to businesses like consultants posting observations of Unknowns just to tap into the network of free workers, especially given that there are not enough workers toiling away at IDing, for free.
But it would certainly be wonderful to get more experts involved, no doubt about it, so I applaud Ingolf’s efforts at the annual meeting, and I agree with those who say they have learned a great deal from having specialists contribute IDs.
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Inaturalist also provides a platform to share unfinished taxonomic work with any and all future researchers. Few taxonomists end their careers having finished every revision and new species description they had in mind. When they pass, whatever they were working on often passes as well, or remains as notes known only to their closest connections. On inaturalist, you can find a new species, add notes to the observations, link to other observations of the same thing, or write a journal post explaining what you see and where you think it fits. If you don’t ever get as far as a publication, a future person can find your work and carry on, even if they’re separated by time, geography, or language.
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Plants and insects are three quarters of iNat obs. That is where we need identifiers.
If the taxon specialists can find issues on iNat - explain the issue (comment or journal post) then IdentiFriday can reach people who are willing to help with the grunt work of tidying up (which shouldn’t rest on the shoulders of burnt out specialists)
https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/are-new-users-required-to-understand-the-differences-between-wild-and-cultivated-when-creating-an-account/57719
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Unfortunately this often includes prioritizing data collection over respecting/conserving the natural resource. I often see observations by experts with leaves, flowers, or fruits removed from plants or even entire plants ripped out the ground roots and all. And why do so many observers think it is perfectly acceptable to capture, pick up, handle, and turn over every lizard, snake, and insect they find? I recently heard a herbarium manager boast that he had 2000 specimens of an extremely rare local endemic wildflower! Imagine all of the generations lost because these plants were not allowed to reproduce. Let’s be more careful as we document their extinction.
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If you’re speaking to academics, highlight the potential for new publications on new ranges, species, invasives, etc, this is an “easy” publication that PIs can use to further their careers while utilizing low time and money investment via citizen data.
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