Detectability: The probability that a species present in an area is observed and recorded.
Effort: The amount and method of search activity (time, distance, strategy) associated with observations.
Geoprivacy: Location obscuring or privatization to protect sensitive taxa or sites.
Indigenous data sovereignty: The right of Indigenous peoples to govern data about their lands, communities, and resources.
Structured survey: A standardized observation protocol with defined effort and sampling design.
Sampling bias: Systematic over- or under-representation of locations, taxa, or times due to observer behavior.
Audit trail: The record of evidence, comments, and changes that support or revise an observation.
Bias surface: A spatial layer used in modeling to account for uneven sampling effort.
Community ID: The consensus taxon produced by iNaturalist identification rules.
Presence-only data: Records that indicate a species was observed, without evidence it was absent elsewhere.
Research Grade: iNaturalist status indicating required evidence and community agreement are present.
Taxonomic resolution: The level of specificity in an identification (e.g., family vs. species).
Verification latency: The time between observation upload and expert review or correction.
Observation
A recorded sighting with evidence and metadata.
Taxon
A named biological group, like species or genus.
Voucher
A specimen or record that supports an observation.