Maps, Dates
It's been awhile since I made a blog post. I don't think anybody reads them, so really they are an open notebook. Here are some things I've learned since last I posted.
- Mapping observations is quite helpful. I noticed some conspicuous holes in my observations, and made a point to get to those locations and see what I'd been missing. For example, I noticed I hadn't logged any observations from a little sand ridge in the middle of the Lena Park Cabin woods. My trips there were rewarded both with some interesting observations, but also with a sense that this section is one of the less disturbed portions of the property.
- Searching "your observations" is a useful practice. Often I photograph something I've observed and recorded previously, but don't remember the exact name. By specifying what I do remember and an approximate season (e.g. "Diptera" and "May or June") it's easy to make a query that generates a manageable list to scan through. For example, when I photographed an unfamiliar potter wasp this spring, I wondered if it was from a genus I hadn't previously recorded. Looking at the list of all potter wasps I'd observed in May and June, it was quickly obvious that it was a new genus for me, and after some looking I concluded it was Symmorpha. I tagged Heather Holm, and she was able to get it to species - Symmorpha canadensis. Not just new for me, but the first for Indiana.
So I'm still pretty much smitten by the iNat interface. All for now.
תגובות
הוספת תגובה