Our Observation of the Week is the first Rhynchocorys odontophylla plant posted to iNaturalist! Seen in Iraq by @aryathesage.

“My love of nature has been greatly influenced by my parents,” says Arya, a fifth year medical student at the University of Sulaymaniyah (UOS). “Both of them were and still are greatly enthusiastic about the natural world, especially my mom. Their shared interest has been passed down to me and my sister as well, however, it has become much more concentrated in me!”

Arya’s first interest in animals was dinosaurs (“I think most children go through some form of dinosaur phase, but mine has lasted for 20 years.”), and it’s expanded to both living organisms and geological phenomena like rocks, minerals, and mountains.

“After developing an interest in mountains, I started acting on that interest in the most basic form: going hiking! As luck would have it, Kurdistan, where I’m from, is a perfect place to satisfy the needs and wants of a mountaineer,” he explains. Arya soon became interested in the trees he saw, and that led him to iNaturalist.

[iNaturalist] opened a whole new door for me in a way I hadn’t realized before. Seeing all of these people here from all over the world sharing pictures of flora and fauna that was around them made me feel more aware of nature than ever before. I started paying more attention to the trees, the wild flowers, the bugs, the birds, even the moss growing on the ground. So, I did what everyone here on iNat did and started taking pictures of everything I could. 

When I shared those pictures on the site for the first time and some people helped identify them, it was a great feeling. A feeling that I had done something worthwhile rather than sitting idly on my computer all day. After a while of sharing photos I was curious to see what other people from Kurdistan had shared on iNat before me and what I saw was a bit underwhelming. Not in the way of quality, but in quantity. There were only about a thousand observations made from Iraqi Kurdistan and most of them were of insects and animals rather than plants. So from that moment I took it upon myself as some sort of a calling or a goal to share all the beautiful plants I find on my hikes with the world through this site.

Now it’s been over one year since my first observation and as I promised myself I think I’ve reached that goal by adding many new observations from Kurdistan, however, that doesn’t mean I’ll stop doing what I love any time soon. As long as I can go out in nature and take photos of the wildlife I will keep sharing the wonders of my homeland with the world. 

My goal was hard to fulfill at first because my dad would have trouble letting me go on nature hikes alone and for good reason. Nature hikes aren’t a walk in the park here since there are many things that could pose threats…This is why my dad said that I had to find a partner to go with and not alone. I didn’t really have anyone I could go with since the family were usually busy, friends didn’t have energy for hikes, and hiking groups wouldn’t really go at my pace. This problem was solved for me by my dear and beloved grandmother [above], who convinced my dad to let me go with the condition that I take her with me. She came with me on almost 80% of my hikes this year and kept me company behind the camera even on the longest of journeys. Even though she can’t walk for long distances, let alone hike, she wanted me to do what I enjoy and came with me to all the beautiful places I visited. So I have her to thank for my love of nature as well, because without her I wouldn’t have been able to see half the plants or the places that I have seen to date.

Last month, one of those hikes was a family trek (this one without Arya’s grandmother) to Bekodyan Pond, located high in the mountains of what will be Halgurd-Sakran National Park. 

The fact that you can find snow at the top even in July and August has made this mountain pond a top destination for local hikers, but the journey towards it is not easy and requires endurance. Me, my sister, my three cousins and my uncle started our trek to the pond early in the morning from our camp around 6 am trying to reach the pond by 12 pm. As we trekked further away from our camp and more into the valley that led to our destination, I started noticing more and more beautiful flowers that I had not seen around my hometown of Sulaymaniyah (Slemani in Kurdish).

I started lagging behind my team because I was slowing down every 20-30 meters to take photographs of the beauty all around me. I found the plant in question in one of these quick stops because the strange shape of its petals - the top one especially shaped like a duck’s head with a long beak - grabbed my attention even from afar. I had never seen something like it before and honestly didn’t know even to which family it belonged (I was thinking it might be a part of Lamiaceae [mint family] at first). Of course, after taking the photos at the time I didn’t think much more of it and resumed running after my teammates who’d left me far behind and were nowhere in sight.

Unfortunately the group didn’t reach Bekodyan Pond, but Arya says “in the end, the trip was a success for me when it comes to finding beautiful plants to photograph and quite honestly one of my most pleasant hiking experiences.”

Arya was close: Rhynchocorys odontophylla definitely belongs to the order Lamiales, which includes mints, but is currently listed as being in the family Orobanchaceae, most of which are parasitic.  It was first documented in Iraq only a few years ago, making it the third species of the genus seen in the country.

“I am not an academic botanist, as I said before my actual topic of study is medicine, but that hasn’t stopped me from having a huge interest in native species of plants,” says Arya (above, near Kani Rash waterfall).

My interest in botany is a hobby more than anything at the moment, because I really can’t afford to be more focused on it than on my future career as a doctor. What’s great about iNaturalist is that it affords people like me the opportunity to share their photographs even if they’re not familiar with the species or even the genus, because there are so many good-natured naturalists who can tell the species even from a bad photograph and can help you in the identification process. In this way I can say that I’ve made some good friends and acquaintances on this site, by asking for their opinions and receiving their generous help in the identification of my unknown or unfamiliar photographs. I can go as far as say that I’ve learned more about plants from them than I would have if I was taking a course in college, and I am forever grateful for their knowledge and the assistance they’ve given me.

(Some quotes have been lightly edited.)

- This short video follows a group hiking to Bekodyan Pond, with some nice looks at the flowers along the way.

- There are over eight thousand verifiable observations from Iraq, here are the most-faved!

- Previous parasitic plant Observations of the Week include posts from Taiwan, Jordan, and Ecuador!

Our Observation of the Week is this White-necked Rockfowl (Picathartes gymnocephalus, Picatharte de Guinée in French), seen in Côte d'Ivoire by @sgodoukpe!

Saint Guillaume Odoukpe, an Assistant Professor of Animal Biology and Ecology at Felix Houphouet-Boigny University, traces his current interest in birds back to 2009,

when I was carrying out a study on birds for my master’s dissertation. At the time, I didn't know anything about birds, except that they are animals that have feathers. With a pair of binoculars and a bird guide containing mostly black-and-white illustrations, I explored my study site and searched for these exceptional fauna. It was the first time that I had seen the beauty and diversity of birds in an environment; you just had to look up and pay a bit of attention to observe them. Each time I identified a species of bird, my scientific interest gradually gave way to a passion for birds and nature.

Cut to June of this year, when Saint Guillaume explored the Lamto Scientific Reserve in central Côte d'Ivoire on a trip sponsored by the International Bird Conservation Partnership (IBCP) and its President and Scientific Director Dr. Nico Arcillia. Saint Guillaume, along with Dr. Abiola Sylvestre Chaffra and Mr. Farid Amadou Bahleman from Benin, Mr. Yendoubouam Kourdjouak and Mr. Lin-Ernni Mikégraba Kaboumba from Togo, surveyed the reserve.

This ornithological tour was requested and organised by Dr Nico to encourage collaboration between West African ornithologists, who receive little support from donors. The objectives of the tour were to promote a better understanding of the status of bird populations and their habitats, and of the threats and challenges facing birds in Côte d'Ivoire. It also aimed to identify priorities for collaboration and capitalize on bird research and conservation efforts in Côte d'Ivoire that can be applied in Togo, Benin, and neighbouring countries.

The following day, after a few observations in the reserve, we went to the birds’ breeding area outside the reserve. Once there, we were able to observe a few nests under construction and nests already containing eggs [above]. After waiting for an hour, we observed two individuals returning to their nests. We were able to get some photos and videos of them. To better understand and protect the species, we plan to carry out a study of its ecology and ethology, and to develop an ecological monitoring system which will be carried out by the local communities.

A species with almost no feathers on its head, White-necked rockfowl range from Guinea to Ghana in West Africa, and like to live by forested streams and rivers, where they can find mud for their nests. Adults mostly feed on insects, but will feed frogs to their offspring. Formerly captured for display in zoos, they're mostly threatened by habitat loss and are listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN Redlist. There are currently fewer than 40 observations of this species on iNaturalist.

“I heard about iNaturalist from my friend Farid Bahleman last November when we were in Victoria Falls for the fifteenth Pan-African Ornithological Congress,” says Saint Guillaume (above, in front).  His current research

focuses on bird ecology and conservation biology, both in their natural environment and in agro-ecosystems. I am also interested in bird migration and the illegal wildlife trade, which are underdeveloped issues in Côte d'Ivoire...

I like nature and photographing birds. iNaturalist gives me the opportunity to share these photos and this passion with other people who like nature. The interaction with the naturalist community allows me to update my knowledge of bird systematics and guides me in my research perspectives.

(Photo of Saint Guillaume by Ouassa Félix. Some quotes have been lightly edited for clarity.)

- An Amorphophallus dracontioides plant seen by Farid Bahleman (@bahleman) was an Observation of the Week back in 2021!

- the team at BBC made a cool video piece about Picathartes.

Our Observation of the Week is this pair of mating Myrmecopsis kenedyae tiger moths, seen in Trinidad and Tobago by @brystrange!

“I was walking alone through the northwestern rainforest of Trinidad one evening, when I saw what I thought to be two wasps on the leaf of a short plant,” says Bryan Ramdeen, a Biology student at the University of the West Indies and a member of the Trinidad and Tobago Field Naturalists’ Club (TTFNC). 

Without hesitation, I immediately aimed my camera and took a photograph. Only when I zoomed in on the photo and noticed the antennae did I realize that they were in fact moths (wasp-mimicking moths) in front of me. I became excited as I’ve seen these moths before on iNaturalist and I knew they were an uncommon species, so I took a couple more photographs.

Trinidad and Tobago is home to a number of really cool wasp moths in the subtribe Euchromiina, which is in the family Erebidae (check out photos and a guide to some of them here). Many do mimic wasps quite well, sporting transparent wings and narrow wasp-like “waists,” which is believed to deter predators. As Bryan mentioned, their antennae are a bit feathery/hairy upon closer inspection, which his photos clearly show. 

While Bryan’s main interest is spiders, he’s fascinated by all wildlife and tries to document as much as he can.

Having obtained a camera in 2021, documenting the wildlife around me became much easier, especially with a macro lens. I try to go on walks through the rainforests of my islands as often as I can, with hopes of coming across unknown or uncommon species, especially spiders. I am not currently involved in any active research, but I plan to do extensive research on the various spider species found in Trinidad and Tobago.

He uses iNaturalist for his research on spiders, and is the top spider identifier in Trinidad and Tobago, as well as the Lesser Antilles. 

I use iNaturalist to share my own observations with the world as the biodiversity in Trinidad and Tobago is very rich due to it once being part of South America. Thus, there are a lot of undescribed species (especially arthropods) to be discovered and documented, which I hope to contribute to. Lastly, I use iNaturalist for leisure. It brings me much joy and fun to spend hours on iNaturalist seeing and identifying people’s observations and having them identify mine.

iNaturalist has definitely changed the way I see the world. I am now constantly looking around me for wildlife everywhere I go, which has actually made me more observant and better at finding it. iNaturalist helps me connect with people across the world who have similar interests as me. I am grateful to have gained so much knowledge about the organisms around me from identifications by other naturalists.

(Photo of Bryan by Shenelle Ramkhelawan (@sheneller). Some quotes have been lightly edited for clarity.)

- @sheneller's black-veined hairstreak butterfly was an Observation of the Week back in 2021!

- Take a look at the most-faved spider observations from Trinidad and Tobago!

We released a new computer vision model today. It has 78,387 taxa up from 77,276. This new model (v2.6) was trained on data exported last month on July 16th and added 1,399 new taxa.

Taxa differences to previous model

The charts below summarize these new taxa using the same groupings we described in past release posts.

By category, most of these new taxa were insects and plants

Here are species level examples of new species added for each category:

• Arachnida
• Fungi
• Plantae
• Reptilia
• Amphibia
• Actinopterygii
• Chromista
• Insecta
• Animalia
• Mollusca
• Mammalia
• Aves

Click on the links to see these taxa in the Explore page to see these samples rendered as species lists. Remember, to see if a particular species is included in the currently live computer vision model, you can look at the “About” section of its taxon page.

We couldn't do it without you

Thank you to everyone in the iNaturalist community who makes this work possible! Sometimes the computer vision suggestions feel like magic, but it’s truly not possible without people. None of this would work without the millions of people who have shared their observations and the knowledgeable experts who have added identifications.

In addition to adding observations and identifications, here are other ways you can help:

• Share your Machine Learning knowledge: iNaturalist’s computer vision features wouldn’t be possible without learning from many colleagues in the machine learning community. If you have machine learning expertise, these are two great ways to help:
• Participate in the annual iNaturalist challenges: Our collaborators Grant Van Horn and Oisin Mac Aodha continue to run machine learning challenges with iNaturalist data as part of the annual Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition conference. By participating you can help us all learn new techniques for improving these models.
• Start building your own model with the iNaturalist data now: If you can’t wait for the next CVPR conference, thanks to the Amazon Open Data Program you can start downloading iNaturalist data to train your own models now. Please share with us what you’ve learned by contributing to iNaturalist on Github.
• Donate to iNaturalist: For the rest of us, you can help by donating! Your donations help offset the substantial staff and infrastructure costs associated with training, evaluating, and deploying model updates. Thank you for your support!

Our Observation of the Week is this Caspian Bent-toed Gecko (Tenuidactylus caspius), seen in Azerbaijan by @kseniiamarianna!

“When the first lockdown started in 2020, I was living in Türkiye in an old building, which was home not only to people, but also to inconspicuous yet cute reptiles: geckos,” says Kseniia Prondzynska, who tells me she grew up in Ukraine and Poland and has “always had a soft spot for animals considered to be ugly or scary by most people, such as snakes, toads, spiders, snails, etc.” While she was interested in nature, she did eventually become a translator, as languages are another passion of hers.

As I suddenly had too much free time and not a lot of opportunities to go out, I started paying more attention to my little “neighbors” and I became truly fascinated with them. As the restrictions were lifted, I started searching for geckos in other cities and countries (I’ve always been an avid traveler).

She found iNat in June of 2020 and has been active since - initially observing but then helping others with identifications. 

First I treated my gecko love as a hobby, but over time I realized that there were plenty of unanswered questions considering geckos’ ecology and the way they expand their ranges by natural and anthropogenic means. I accidentally found several introduced gecko populations in the Caucasus and Central Asia and that’s how I decided I would like to become a professional herpetologist. 

I’m currently a PhD candidate at V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University in Ukraine. Due to the ongoing war in my homeland I’m not able to conduct research in Ukraine, but I’ve been really lucky to receive a grant from European Molecular Biology Organization to continue my work at Bülent Ecevit University in Zonguldak, Türkiye. My research project is related to the population genetics of native and introduced populations of geckos belonging to the genus Tenuidactylus.

Kseniia came across the gecko you see above while searching for lizards at night in Azerbaijan, where they appear to be an introduced species.  

It seems that the geckos arrived there by railway – as weird as it sounds, geckos actually often travel by trains! Since many gecko species are synanthropic (that is, they live close to people), they often get accidentally transported with cargo. If the climate at the destination is suitable for them, they can easily establish a new population.

As you might suspect from their common name, this gecko species is native to the Caspian Sea region, although they have spread to other areas. In their 2014 paper, Hojati and Savasari found that this species’ preferred prey in their study region in northern Iran preferred eating mosquitoes and house flies, and that males are slightly larger than females. 

“They are mostly active at night and I obviously catch the attention of local people while searching for geckos with a flashlight ☺,” says Kseniia (above, with a Large Whip Snake in Turkey). 

Being an extremely shy person, I used to be terrified of these interactions, but now I use them to educate people about reptiles and to answer their questions. There are many misconceptions about reptiles, so I hope I can both help people overcome their fears and save some critters’ lives. I also find it crucial to promote ethical research. I get really upset each time I read a paper in which the authors state they sacrificed dozens of animals for science, while it wasn’t necessary at all. Using modern technologies, the vast majority of research objectives can be achieved without killing the animals. Even if we work with a super common species, like the Caspian Geckos, I believe it’s important to remember that each life matters!

I would like to thank iNaturalist for bringing me closer to nature, helping me to become a researcher and connecting me with like-minded people from all over the world! Love and peace to everyone.

(Photo of Kseniia by Maria Jonker. Some quotes have been lightly edited for clarity.)

- two introduced gecko populations Kseniia found are Tenuidactylus bogdanovi in Kazakhstan, and Tenuidactylus caspius in Georgia. The former can compete with local Mediodactylus russowii geckos, so Kseniia says the population should be monitored.