Keep cranking with those ID's!
As of midnight last night, we had 26,931 observations (9th place), 1,934 species (11th place) and 1,207 observers (4th place). We have been neck-and-neck with Austin for species for about a day--at this moment we are 9 species behind them; earlier this morning it was just 1 species difference!
HATS OFF to the identifiers! Especially @tsn since you're not even in the area, and @rock_flipper since we know you would rather be outside! 550 people have helped with ID's and many more identifications are needed. So: Here are some more ID tips, whether you attend one of the remaining group ID parties or you work on your own.
Take care of your peeps: If you led a trip or encouraged someone to participate, be sure to review their observations. In ID mode for CNC-DC 2019:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identify?place_id=any&project_id=city-nature-challenge-2019-washington-dc-metro-area
open the filter and type in a user name. If you disagree with their ID, and especially if they are new to iNat, leave a constructive comment about why you disagree (e.g. "Pacific dogwood does not occur in our area") along with your species suggestion. Also be aware that new iNat users may not check their notifications before the end of the ID period, and an email from you saying you suggested an alternate ID might be what it takes to get them to go back in and learn from your feedback.
Pluck the low-hanging fruit: It's fun to spend lots of time looking things up in field guides chasing an ID down for that one mystery plant! At the same time, we have lots and lots of quick ID's waiting to be made. Try this:
Go to our Identify page again
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/identify?place_id=any&project_id=city-nature-challenge-2019-washington-dc-metro-area
and in the Species field at the top of the page, type in a genus you're pretty familiar with--say, Lamium. You'll see a bunch of lamium species observations ready to check off "Agree" below the thumbnail picture (if you do agree--no pressure!) . Do that and BOOM--that's half a dozen or so ID's right there in just a few seconds. Then refresh the page to bring up ones that still need ID. Now you'll see ones that are ID'd to genus and need your help to get to species, or that you want to open up the observation to take a closer look at the photo. Open up the first, do your thing with it (don't forget to hit Save if you've suggested a new species ID), and use the right arrow on your keyboard to quickly move to the next one.
Try this with some of the genera I mentioned yesterday (poison ivies, lindera, skunk cabbages, liquidambar, claytonia, cornus, cottontails, or deer.) Some others to try are:
Redbuds: Ours is Eastern redbud.
Pawpaws: We have the common pawpaw.
Microstegium: So far we only have microstegium vimineum, thank goodness.
Berberis: Sadly almost all of these will be Japanese barberry.
Dandelion: Learn Common vs. Red-seeded: https://www.ediblewildfood.com/red-seeded-dandelion.aspx
Plantains: It's not hard to learn the 6 that are likely to be in our area. Dwarf is fuzzy and cute; American has reddish lower stems and curled-edge leaves compared to Greater (American reminds me of spring lettuce mix); Ribwort looks ribby. Bracted, Swamp and Redseed sadly have not been ID'd yet in CNCDC19 but maybe one is hiding amongst all those Plantagos that need ID. Will YOU be the one to find it?
Thanks for giving ID's a try, and I'll see you in ID land tomorrow (I still have to finish uploading my observations :-/ )
Comentarios
Agregar un comentario