Help with Identiyfing species

[kinyonga]

Museumofosteology...it looks like it will be a very interesting place to visit! Good luck with it!

How will you get the skeletons/bones?

 

[Cainschams]

Were these your specimen or ones someone brought to you? I wonder how many of these are still alive from the recent shipment. I dont have a good feeling

 

[morpheon]

The museum person stated on their first post that they received these carcasses.

 

[kinyonga]

Chris said..."I've always been a proponent for adopting the rule that many other forums have implemented against people making random guesses on IDs and requiring them to justify any identification they make"...how do they determine who is making random guesses and who should justify their identifications?

 

[Chris Anderson]

Chris said..."I've always been a proponent for adopting the rule that many other forums have implemented against people making random guesses on IDs and requiring them to justify any identification they make"...how do they determine who is making random guesses and who should justify their identifications?

I think requiring everyone to justify their identifications would be beneficial. Failure to do so and a track record of far off incorrect identifications would easily indicate who was making random guesses.

Chris

 

[morpheon]

If you guys care to hear my opinion, here it is;

Guessing and making random guess on various friendly contest is Ok, as long as it doesn't concern something official. Therefore, if i take Jessica's thread ( https://www.chameleonforums.com/who-am-i-lots-pics-46050/ ), i see no harm in people making random guess! However, when it concerns something more official, like if it will be published, or shown to public, then i believe it is essential that only people who are 100% sure of their identification should reply to the thread. And yes, justifying identifications helps, as it adds more validity to the process, and can help discussing about harder identifications. And that includes here, as i feel like some people should have remained quiet. However, i can't blame them as there is no rule about it, as far as i know.

I just believe it's not all black nor all white, and making random guess can be good and bad sometimes! And we all need some training!

 

[kinyonga]

I agree with you, morpheon, concerning anyone being able to put forth a "guess" when its just someone doing it as a contest. I also feel that people who don't really know only confuse things when they put forth their opinion on what it is...but who draws the line on who doesn't have to prove what they say is right??

 

[morpheon]

[...]
but who draws the line on who doesn't have to prove what they say is right??

I doubt all the best people in here can clearly explain why they believe X specie is really that specie. Therefore, even if it helps adding more validity to the identification, i can hardly see any rule about it.

It's also up to the original poster to believe whoever has the best answer. If they are clever enough, they should be able to determine that "i believe it's X specie" as opposed to "you can see that the tip of the nose is..., and that the spines are more..." doesn't have the same value! Once again, if we have more than one person agreeing with the same specie in the same post, it adds more to the validity of the answer.

Just my 2 cents!

 

[Syn]

I think requiring everyone to justify their identifications would be beneficial. Failure to do so and a track record of far off incorrect identifications would easily indicate who was making random guesses.

Chris

While I do agree this could be beneficial to the forums, I am not sure how it would be implemented as far as the track record goes.
Is a track record really fair? This could probably scare some people who do know the right answer into not posting for the fear that there's a slim chance they are wrong.
Just sounds like the track record could go bad if there was a negative consequence.

However, if the track record could be put into effect without the negative side, perhaps warnings (as in a warning system) would be issued and the posts deleted, that would be enough deterrent.

Just a thought.

 

[Chris Anderson]

I definitely agree that when an identification is posted as a game or contest, that is completely different than when someone is truly asking help IDing an animal. Also, I would not expect mods to ban a user over an incorrect identification. I'm simply saying that requiring users to justify and explain exactly why they thing something is what they think it is will require them to think about it and keep many people from posting complete guesses. If a user can't explain why they think it is what they think it is, they shouldn't be guessing. If a person does exhibit an obvious trend of horribly off guesses without justifying their guesses correctly, a warning from a mod would be warranted. I think this would increase the standard of information on the forum.

Chris

 

[Syn]

I see now, Chris. That makes sense and I do like the idea.

 

[kinyonga]

So...how do they determine who has to justify their identifications and who doesn't?

How do you know for sure who is asking as a contest and who is asking seriously...its not always easy to know at first.

(BTW...I agree that there shouldn't just be wild guesses for serious inquiries.)

 

[Chris Anderson]

So...how do they determine who has to justify their identifications and who doesn't?

How do you know for sure who is asking as a contest and who is asking seriously...its not always easy to know at first.

(BTW...I agree that there shouldn't just be wild guesses for serious inquiries.)

I think everyone should justify their guesses, even the most experienced IDers. It can only serve to help other members learn what to look for and how to ID animals if everyone justifies their IDs.

Telling for sure if it is a contest/game or not could be difficult. I guess I'd hope that the user would qualify that they knew what it was and wanted to see if others could figure it out. Even in this case, however, I think justifying your reasons for an ID would be educational.

Chris

 

[kinyonga]

Chris said..."think everyone should justify their guesses, even the most experienced IDers. It can only serve to help other members learn what to look for and how to ID animals if everyone justifies their IDs. "...I like that idea!

I also think it would be a good idea for people to say that its a "contest" and not a seious ID that is needed.