Record fields #
This topic describes the most important fields of the record form and their meaning in ENTOMONE.
Species, family and plant #
Species describes the identification of the record. In the form you can use the local dictionary and iNaturalist suggestions. Family helps organise records and galleries, and plant is especially important for breeding and for publication to iNaturalist.
The host plant should come from the plant dictionary, if known. For breeding it can be used in the iNaturalist comment in the format ex <plant>.
Specimen count #
The quantity field accepts values from 1 to 999. The limit is checked in the form and on the server. If you have an unusual case, enter the actual number within this range and add an explanation in the notes.
Sex #
You choose sex with buttons:
- Unspecified,
- Male,
- Female.
Unspecified is the safe choice when you are not sure, or when the record concerns a trace, a larva, breeding material, or a photo where sex is not visible.
Observation type #
In the current model, the area previously described as Observation type has two meanings:
- Record type: Record or Note,
- Acquisition source: Nature or Breeding.
Record is a normal observation or specimen entry. It can have a species, date, site, media and can be prepared for a report, export or publication. Note is a separate field-entry type: it requires content, a date and valid GPS, while species, photo and site are optional. It is not a normal iNaturalist publication candidate.
Acquisition source clarifies the record:
- Nature - the record comes from a field observation or material collected directly in nature,
- Breeding - the record concerns material or a specimen obtained in breeding.
The most common combinations are Record + Nature, Record + Breeding and Note. Details are in Record types.
Observer #
Observer means the author of the record. It is usually filled in based on the logged-in user. In mobile field mode the observer comes from your session, so you do not have to select it in the field.
Date #
For the Nature source, the date means the observation date. For the Breeding source, the record date can mean the date the specimen was obtained, but for publication to iNaturalist the material collection date matters, usually resulting from a site visit. For Note, the date means the date of the entry or the event you are describing.
GPS and accuracy #
The record's GPS can come from the photo's EXIF, from phone GPS, or from a point set manually on the map. GPS accuracy is saved as a radius in metres. The accuracy field is compact, because typical values are short, for example 5, 10, 25.
ENTOMONE rejects zero or unreliable coordinates such as 0,0. This case usually means that the phone's system passed a file without real GPS.
Site and locality #
A site groups records spatially by GPS and radius. Locality is the description of where one record was made, for example a name read from the map or entered manually.
Do not treat locality as a site. Two records can have different locality descriptions and still belong to one site, if they fall within its GPS radius.
Notes #
Notes are free text. In a normal record they can add detail about the circumstances. In a Note they become the main content of the entry. Do not put data with its own field into notes if you want to filter or export records by it later.