Can anyone explain the numbered triangles that sometimes appear with the species name when submitting a record. I can't find a key for these. Examples are Maiden's Blush moth comes with a yellow 2 and Dark Dagger a red 4. Please explain! Thanks
Can anyone explain the numbered triangles that sometimes appear with the species name when submitting a record. I can't find a key for these. Examples are Maiden's Blush moth comes with a yellow 2 and Dark Dagger a red 4. Please explain! Thanks
For some groups a level of ID difficulty has been assigned to each species from 1-5. Typically those rated 4 or 5 with red triangles will not be identifiable from photos, and might require dissection, a specimen run through a key etc. If you hover your cursor over the triangle then text appears describing what they mean.
So for your examples, Maiden's Blush as a '2' just has some species that someone who doesn't see them very often might get confused by, but can be identified by someone with a bit of experience. Dark Dagger (adult) moths cannot be visually separated from Grey Dagger, so should only be recorded as Dark Dagger if a specimen has been examined, otherwise it should be recorded as the aggregate, Grey/Dark Dagger.
Note that this system cannot separate out different life stages, so Dark Dagger moth caterpillars are actually quite distinctive so it can be recorded at the larval stage from photos.
Ultimately these are for guidance, so if something comes up with a 3 or up it is worth checking what that means and acting accordingly, but if you are confident that your ID is correct and you have supplied supporting evidence then just treat them (and any automated messages generated afterwards) as guidance.