Recording species observations using Biodiversity Data Capture could not be easier. For your ease we have prepared a short video highlighting the recording process.
Some important points of note when recording are as follows:
Biodiversity Data Capture is intended for real-time recording in the field. As such it does not allow for the manual entry of location data such as grid references or lat/long. If you have species observations which you would like to manually submit then you may do so using Ireland's Citizen Science Portal.
Species images can be captured using your devices camera or you can use previously captured images stored on your device.
GPS : As you move around the app will automatically update its location. The app's location naturally depends on your device's in-built GPS module. Hence if your device does not have a clear lock with GPS services then the app will either not receive a location or will be delayed in resolving a location. Most of the time this is not an issue but if you are in a very built up area or if the sky is particularly obscured i.e. heavily forested areas, there may be a delay in the app resolving a location.
The app will only update it's location if it receives a location from your device accurate to within 40 metres. Each time the app receives a "good" location from your device then it will update its location on screen. If however you are walking and the app has not received an updated "good" location, it will fall back to the last known "good" location which it received from your device.
When recording a species observation the app locks the GPS location for that record when you open the species selection screen.
