We stay in the Iberian Peninsula for the 19th stop on the iNaturalist World Tour: Portugal. As the map below shows, Portugal includes the islands of the Azores and Madeira off the coast of North Africa where @marcoschmidtffm has made many observations.
But it's easier to see what's happening on the Iberian Penninsula if we zoom in. There is a cluster of top observers in the Algarve region where @valter@mjcorreia and @flight69 are based. Moving north, there is another cluster around Lisbon (e.g. @jpsilva, @ldacosta, @pbeja65). @francisco100 and @duarte's observations are centered to the north of Lisbon. @avepel is the top observer near Braga.
The growth graph is dominated by the peak in July 2018 when, under the leadership of @luis2 and @ldacosta the BioDiversity4all project moved from the Observado platform to iNaturalist (as the Portugal node of the iNaturalist Network). We helped users copy over their observations. Unfortunately the vast majority (70,000) of the observations we copied belong to @francisco100 who has only made a single observation since. (@francisco100 please let us know if there's anything we can do to get you more comfortable using iNaturalist!). It's likely that the BioDiversity4All collaboration has helped drive the increase in observations per month since 2018.
@duarte is the top identifier in Portugal. @valter, @rafaelmatias, and @ldacosta lead in plant, insect, and bird identifications respectively. Many thanks to @pbeja65 and other top identifiers for providing their local expertise.
What can we to make iNaturalist better in Portugal? Please share your thoughts below or on this forum post.
Estamos en España para la parada 18 en el iNaturalist Tour Mundial. Tres de los principales observadores, @gmucientes, @ cesarpollo5 y @fdejuana, se encuentran en el extremo norte del país. @artdivcanon tiene su sede en las Islas Canarias, donde @ahospers & @fero han hecho muchas contribuciones durante sus visitas aquí desde los Países Bajos y Eslovaquia. Hay un grupo de observadores destacados en el sur de Andalucía (por ejemplo, @jimarcor, @ susanne-kasimir, @whodden, @liesvanrompaey, @humbertoferron) y alrededor de las ciudades de Madrid (por ejemplo, @melesmeles, @juliandiaz, @pdfuenteb), Valencia (por ejemplo, @supergan), y Barcelona (por ejemplo, @mattiamenchetti, @orlandof, @mammal, @xbejard, @ xavimm75, @carmelo\_lopez). El botánico @danielcahen ha contribuido muchas observaciones durante las visitas a las Islas Baleares.
CREAF under the leadership of @bernat did some fantastic early outreach for iNaturalist in Spain, but unfortunately stopped using the platform in 2016. Nonetheless, observations per month have increased significantly in Span since then and is continuing to increase rapidly as more an more Spaniards and visitors to Spain have become involved.
CREAF, con el liderazgo de @bernat, hizo un gran número de actividades para iNaturalist en España, pero desafortunadamente dejó de usar la plataforma en 2016. No obstante, las observaciones por mes han aumentado significativamente en España desde entonces. Continúan aumentando rápidamente a medida que más españoles y visitantes a España se han involucrado.
@pdfuenteb, @martinho\_cabana , and @jgd have contributed significant local identification expertise from within Spain. Meanwhile, @ ldacosta and @khaledayyach have shared lots of expertise from nearby Portugal and Algeria. The contributions of @borisb, who specializes in identifying beetles from around the globe, can also be seen here.
@pdfuenteb, @martinho\_cabana y @jgd han contribuido mucho experiencia en identificación adentro de España. Mientras tanto, @ldacosta y @khaledayyach han compartido muchos conocimientos de las cercanías de Portugal y Argelia. Las contribuciones de @borisb, que se especializa en la identificación de escarabajos de todo el mundo, también se pueden ver aquí.
What can we do to make iNaturalist more vibrant in Spain? Please share your thoughts below or on this forum post.
¿Qué podemos hacer para que iNaturalist sea más vibrante en España? Por favor, comparte tus pensamientos aqui o en esta publicación del foro.
We head to Brazil for our 17th stop on the iNaturalist World Tour. The top 50 observers in Brazil are distributed across this huge and biodiverse country. As expected, many of the top observers are clustered along the Atlantic Coast heading north from Porto Alegre (e.g. @henriqueraupp) north through the Sao Paulo area (e.g. @mzamoner, @pajeu, @josev_g, @alessandradalia) all the way to Salvador (e.g. @deboas). @nelson\_wisnik and @arnoldwijker travel widely but their observations are centered here. There is also a cluster of observers near the capital (e.g. @douglas-u-oliveira, @onildo\_marini), in Acre in the far western part of the country (@edson\_guilherme, @marcos\_silveira), and in the Amazon city of Manaus (e.g. @renata\_xavier). @birdernaturalist travels widely but his observations are centered on the border between Mato Grosso and Para.
The top identifier in Brazil is @michelotto who researches spiders. @josev\_ge and @diegoalmendras also bring local South American identification expertise along with @deboas, @gasperinbio, and @meiterer. The top insect identifiers @wongun (Hemiptera, Korea), @johnascher (Hymenoptera, Singapore), @borisb (Coleoptera, Germany) show how insect specialists can be a huge help to iNaturalist observers across the globe. Thanks to @diogoprov for sharing his regional amphibian expertise.
What can we do to capture momentum in Brazil and take things to the next level? Please share your thoughts below or on this forum post.
Whats odd is that while there is a group of top observers based in Malaysia who use the iNaturalist regularly (e.g. @anukma@ongzi@dhfischer@johnhowes@tansh91) and other regular users based in nearby Singapore, most of the observers associated with these large events (many of whom are top observers in Malaysia) have only use iNaturalist during these events (e.g. @krentan, @affan1990@syuhadasapno@ecologist31@nurulfitrah@wuhaowern @asiahkadir). It's interesting that they've contributed so much during these events but haven't gone on to use iNaturalist regularly at all.
It seems like we have a clear challenge/opportunity in Malaysia. How do we grow the community of regular users from within Malaysia. Is there anything that could be done to convince participants in these large events to continue using iNaturalist outside of the events? Please share your thoughts below or on this forum post.
We've reached the third week of the iNaturalist World Tour! This week, we'll visit Ecuador, Brazil, & Costa Rica in Latin America, Portugal & Spain on the Iberian Peninsula in Europe, and India & Malaysia in Asia.
¡Hemos llegado a la tercera semana del iNaturalist Tour Mundial! Esta semana, visitaremos Ecuador, Brasil y Costa Rica en América Latina, Portugal y España en la Península Ibérica en Europa, e India y Malasia en Asia.
Let's kick the week off in Ecuador! The map below shows the top 50 observers zoomed out to see all of Ecuador including the Galapagos Islands. In the Galapagos the top observers in the area around Santa Cruz Island seem to be mostly visitors from the United States (e.g. @johngsalamander). There have been several projects using iNaturalist in the Galapagos organized by the Charles Darwin Foundation, California Academy of Sciences, National Geographic, and others.
¡Vamos a empezar la semana en Ecuador! El mapa muestra los 50 principales observadores alejados para ver todo el Ecuador, incluidas las Islas Galápagos. En las Galápagos, los principales observadores estan en el área alrededor de la Isla Santa Cruz. Parecen ser en su mayoría visitantes de los Estados Unidos (por ejemplo, @johngsalamander). Hay varios proyectos usando iNaturalist en Galapagos organizado por la Fundación Charles Darwin, la Academia de Ciencias de California, National Geographic y otros.
Here's the same map zoomed in to show more detail from continental Ecuador. At this scale we can make out a distinct cluster of top observers around Quito (e.g. @rudygelis, @holgerbeck, @david\_torres etc.). There's a second distinct cluster around Tena in the Amazon (e.g. @mcclarinj, @darwin20, @liz226, etc.). Other top observers like @damontighe are focused elsewhere in the country such as @jcamacho in Santa Elena near the Pacific Coast.
Aquí está el mismo mapa ampliado para mostrar más detalles del Ecuador continental. En esta escala, podemos distinguir un grupo distinto de observadores principales alrededor de Quito (por ejemplo, @rudygelis, @holgerbeck, @david\_torres, etc.). Hay un segundo grupo distinto alrededor de Tena en el Amazonas (por ejemplo, @mcclarinj, @ darwin20, @ liz226, etc.). Otros observadores como @damontighe están enfocados en otros lugares del país, como @jcamacho en Santa Elena, cerca de la costa del Pacífico.
Beginning in 2011, @the_biodiversity_group (led by Dr. Paul Hamilton) organized several events using iNaturalist around Ecuador. But the number of observations per month began ramping up over the last year once Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO) under the leadership of @inclandj began promoting iNaturalist through bioblitzes and classes such as Entomologia General UCE in Quito. The huge peak in April 2019 resulted from a very successful showing in the 2019 City Nature Challenge in the Amazonian city of Tena organized by the INABIO in collaboration with IKIAM University
A partir de 2011, @the_biodiversity_group (dirigido por el Dr. Paul Hamilton) organizó varios eventos utilizando iNaturalist en todo Ecuador. Pero el número de observaciones por mes comenzó a aumentar en el último año una vez que el Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INABIO), bajo el liderazgo de @inclandj, comenzó a promocionar iNaturalist mediante bioblitzes y clases como Entomologia General UCE en Quito. El aumento en abril de 2019 fue el resultado de una exitosa exhibición en el Reto Naturalista Urbano 2019 en la ciudad amazónica de Tena, organizada por el INABIO en colaboración con la Universidad IKIAM.
INABIO's contributions can be seen in the graph below where top identifiers @felipecampos, @jorgebrito, and @osita are affiliated. Many thanks to @afid@johnascher@johngsalamander and @maractwin for their identifications of plants, birds, herps, and fish respectively.
Las contribuciones de INABIO se pueden ver en el siguiente gráfico. Los principales identificadores @felipecampos, @jorgebrito y @osita están afiliados a INABIO. Muchas gracias a @afid@johnascher@johngsalamander y @maractwin por sus identificaciones de plantas, aves,
reptiles y anfibios, y peces respectivamente.
What can we do to keep up this momentum in Ecuador? Please share your thoughts below or on this forum post.
¿Qué podemos hacer para mantener este impulso en Ecuador? Por favor, comparte tus pensamientos a continuación o en este post del foro.
“At work they call me the Slug Queen,” says Lauren Kitayama, an Assistant Manager at Kayak Connection in California. “Daylight permitting, I paddle once a week before work on the Elkhorn Slough. A couple of years ago, if you'd asked any of the local guides they might have said there were 5 species of sea slug on the slough. Last year I documented 27!”
The slug seen above was one of twenty Navanax inermis she spotted that morning, and said they were mating on the sea lettuce near the dock at work. “They are one of my favorite slugs,” she says,
They are large enough for people to appreciate, and so absolutely beautiful! I love using them to get people excited about the unloved slimy things that live in the ocean. One of my goals is always to show people something they never even imagined existed on the planet, and Navanax are a great opportunity to do that. As a kayak guide I work with a lot of school children, and love having the chance to inspire them to protect and appreciate the natural world around them.
While nudibranchs are the most commonly known order of sea slug, the Navanax inermis belongs to an entirely different order: Cephalaspidea, or the headshield slugs. Most members of this order, including the California Aglaja, do have a shell, but it is usually either tiny or internal. Navanax inermis are large slugs, growing anywhere from 2.5 to 10 inches (6.35 - 25.4 cm) in length, and they prey upon other gastropods and even small fish!
Lauren (above) earned a Masters in Marine Conservation from the University of Miami (FL), where she focused on the impacts of marine debris. “I am zealous about protecting the oceans from plastic...[and] someday I hope to work for the UN attacking the plastic pollution problem in Southeast Asia.” For now, however, she says she loves her current job, and tells me
My favorite thing is to see something I've never seen before. "I don't know" is my favorite answer to the question, "what is it?" I think that's how this whole slug thing started. They are beautiful, and most people would never look for them/see them without a guide. For whatever reason my slug observation skills are great. Can't find my keys half the time (or the sunglasses that are on my head), but a 9 mm sea slug hiding in a patch of kelp... no problem.
With my ecologist brain, I am excited to continue documenting slugs on the slough to see if a temporal pattern emerges (when are particular species showing up? Are they predictably in the same locations year after year?) I try very hard to get a photo of every species I see every week so that I can continue to document their presence/absence on the slough.
We wrap up week 2 of the iNaturalist World Tour in France. Top observers are well distributed across the country. There are clusters of top observers around Montpellier (e.g. @jujurenoult) and Paris (e.g. @brunodurand). @fabienpiednoir is based near Nice, @pdubois near Lyon, and @zanskar on the island of Corsica.
The number of observations per month from France has doubled the last couple of years. Like most countries in Europe, there is a strong seasonal pattern in the graph.
While @weimenroy is the top identifier in France, @mercantour has identified the most plants, @pdubois the most insects and spiders, and @ldacosta the most birds.
While iNaturalist use has been growing in France, I believe its still relatively little used in the country. What can we do to make iNaturalist work better in France? Please share your thoughts below or on this forum post
iNaturalist has been growing rapidly in Taiwan thanks to the leadership of Cheng-Tao Lin (@mutolisp) who has done an incredible amount of outreach within Taiwan while also leading efforts to translate and localize the platform. In the past year, The Society of Wilderness used iNaturalist as part of their annual habitat investigation and conservation activities. You can read the report here. You can find several projects here associated with the effort. 2019 was also the first year Taiwan participated in the City Nature Challenge. In Chiayi, The Society of Wilderness recorded 10k observation and 2187 species during April. @mutolisp and others also worked to introduce iNaturalist in biodiversity and environmental education courses in several universities including the National Chiayi University and Tunghai University.
The top vascular plant identifier in Taiwan is Chia-Lun Hsieh (@galanhsnu), a research assistant of Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica. @galanhsnu is followed by Po-Chung Chen (@pochung). @pochung is an enviromnental educator and has taught several courses to engage youth in nature. @yuchuan is the top insect identifier. Many of the moth identifications in Taiwan on iNaturalist can be traced to participants in the Taiwan Moth Information Center. This effort to create an online moth database is led by Hsu-Hong Lin, the chief secretary of the The Endemic Species Research Institute of Taiwan.
Many thanks to @mutolisp for providing most of the research used in this post. Please share your ideas below or on this forum thread on what we can do to make iNaturalist even better in Taiwan!
The iNaturalist community continues to grow and, as we brought up in a previous blog post about Community Guidelines, that does mean more instances of iNaturalist users posting objectionable content or otherwise behaving poorly (although this is still a small fraction of behavior on iNat).
Site curators previously had the ability to delete any comments by another, but we are now limiting that ability, at least on observations, to simply hiding objectionable comments. This was proposed and discussed in the iNaturalist Forum here.
Now, if a site curator finds that a comment (and this includes comments attached to identifications) is insulting, obscene, hate speech, or clearly spam, they can hide the comment (although they must provide a reason for their action). Let me give you an example of how this works. I should probably state that the comment here is not something that should be hidden, and the stated reason for hiding it is facetious, but I thought it best to be use a non-offensive comment as an example here.
A hidden comment will look like this to everyone who is not the commenter, a site curator, or an iNaturalist staff member:
The commenter, site curators, and iNaturalist staff will see this:
If they click on “Show Hidden Content,” they will see the comment, who created it, which curator hid the comment, and the curator’s stated reason for hiding it. Anyone will be able to see the Moderation History link, and the commenter will also see the Contact Support link.
Comments will not be hidden on mobile apps until we update the mobile apps to support this feature. That should be soon.
The commenter will not be able to delete or edit their comment while it is hidden, and iNaturalist staff are the only ones who can unhide a comment. The commenter (or another curator) can reach out to help@inaturalist.org if they believe the comment should not be hidden. iNaturalist staff will need to provide a reason for unhiding the comment.
We believe this new functionality is an improvement over the current system for the following reasons:
Deleting another user’s content is a pretty consequential action. This allows site curators (without whom iNaturalist would cease to function - thank you curators!) to hide objectionable comments on observations without deleting it.
It improves transparency. The commenter, site curators, and iNaturalist staff can see who hid the comment and why they did so.
There have been some users who will make an offensive or insulting comment, then delete or edit the comment once the intended target has seen it, or once it has been flagged. This should prevent the majority of these cases, and leave a record for staff or curators to investigate if needed.
A visible indicator of a hidden comment can provide context to discussions. For example, in this observation there is no indication that jimjohnson’s comment is in response to anything.
If you are not a curator and you see a comment which clearly violates iNaturalist’s Community Guidelines (especially those under the Suspendable Offenses category), please flag the comment so a curator can take a look, or email help@inaturalist.org. The hiding functionality currently only applies to comments on observations, but it’s possible we will expand it to other types of content, such as entire observations, IDs, comments on flags, etc. And as with any feature, this is subject to future changes, updates, or perhaps even deprecation.
We return to Europe to visit Germany, the 12th stop on the iNaturalist World Tour. Here, the top 50 observers are clustered near cities around central Germany: @amzamz near Saarbrucken, @martingrimm near Leipzig, @reddad@anro near Heidelberg, others near Hannover, Bonn, and Berlin etc.
iNaturalist has been growing rapidly in Germany. There's strong seasonality to the observations per month graph. The spike in August last year is an artifact of @ahospers importing his observations from Observation.org.
@jakob is a prolific identifier in Germany - as well as across much of Europe and the African continent. @rolftheobo is leading identifications of plants, the group with most observations in Germany.
Even though iNaturalist is growing rapidly in Germany, it is still very small compared to similar sites like Naturgucker.de which are much more widely known and used. Please share your ideas below or on this forum thread on what we can do to make iNaturalist better in Germany!
