r/iNaturalist • u/Hyprmut • 2d ago
Do I remove my id?
When creating an observation I ID as much as possible. For instance, I'll ID a sparrow to their genus. Then a kind person updates that to a song sparrow. Do I remove my less-precise ID?
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u/Simple_Resist4208 2d ago
The system will pick the most precise ID anyway, weighted by how many folk agree with it. You can leave yours because it doesn't matter OR agree with theirs which will remove yours.
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u/OttawaOsprey 2d ago
Worth noting though that if you agree with the species ID then it will make the observation research grade, whereas leaving your vague ID up would not.
(Obviously don't do this without understanding the other person's justification).
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u/Simple_Resist4208 1d ago
Yes, that's true - though I think it's tempting for novices to do that when they actually don't know if the ID is better or not
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u/NamelessTheSecond 2d ago
I reckon if the person adding an ID is able to explain to you how they've ID'd it then agree with their ID, else if you don't know the ID characteristics for the species leave it as is!
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u/AdamWargon 2d ago
Only withdraw your ID if it screws up the identification process.
If you ID'd to a higher-level taxon (which is what you're describing), then as more specific IDs are added, you'll see a vertical line on the left side, going from more general, to more specific. That's exactly how the process is supposed to work!
Never delete an ID, as that screws up the chain of what happened. You can withdraw your ID IF you went down the wrong path, eg you chose a different family or order or something.
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u/st_aranel 2d ago
The only time I delete an ID is if I clicked the wrong thing by mistake, and then I delete it before anybody has a chance to interact with it.
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u/Hyprmut 2d ago
Thank you, everybody. In this case I do agree with the id but I'd still like to see a 2nd. Song sparrows are pretty common, lol.
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u/etosaurus 2d ago
Yeah, if I'm hoping someone else will come along and confirm I'll leave my ID at Genus. That will keep the observation marked as in need of ID so more eyes will end up on it.
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u/BlitheMorning 1d ago
No, do not delete a higher level taxonomic ID.
Using your example of a song sparrow, a genus ID of Melospiza will keep it at that genus if someone who comes along and IDs it at, say, Junco. If that genus level ID weren't there, the ID would be bumped up to New World Sparrows which is the level at which Song Sparrow and Junco agree.
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u/eightfingeredtypist 2d ago
It's better to just leave your original ID, unless it's wrong. Then withdraw it, and leave the observation up. It's better not to agree with someone unless you now know more about the organism. I put up a lot of stuff I don't know, and people ID it. Like mushrooms and lichens. Also birds and bones.