Comparing Insect ID Apps for Budding Entomologists

4 months ago 13

With several apps out there to choose from, just where do you turn when trying to identify a troublesome insect?

My previous post focusing on the best plant identification apps has quickly turned into one of my highest preforming blogs ever with some 15,500 views to date. It seems that has technology improves, and mobile apps become a permanent part of the naturalist’s arsenal, there is a growing desire to find the best digital assistant for wildlife recording on the go. Cue a new post!

Photo-based apps are growing in popularity across all wildlife groups and despite some turning their noses up at the idea, they are here to stay and have the possibility to engage and encourage an incredibly diverse audience. From teachers and students to citizen scientists and even, dare I say it, established naturalists, many are turning to apps to identify puzzling finds, confirm their identifications and corroborate identifications made using field guides. Moreover, technology is developing all of the time meaning apps previous dismissed as inaccurate are growing ever more reliable.

Apps associated with plants and birds are fairly commonplace and many people use them, but less discussed is the possibility of using apps to identify insects – perhaps the most diverse and tricky group of all. Despite the challenges of insect identification, there are several apps out there designed to demystify the process. In this post, I thought I would run a little experiment comparing some of the most popular…

First, some ground rules

One image only – some apps allow for multiple images but we’ll not be doing that here
Decent(ish) images – Poor quality images, lacking key features, pose problems for even the best apps (and naturalists!)
Verified species – apps will be tested only on species with a confirmed ID courtesy of an expert verifier
Native species only – I wanted to test this on insects likely to be encountered in the UK.

Meet the Insect App Test subjects

Oak Bush-cricket (Meconema thalassinum)
Brown China-mark (Elophila nymphaeata)
Patchwork Leafcutter Bee (Megachile centuncularis)
Platycheirus rosarum – a hoverfly
Riponnensia splendens – a hoverfly
Larch Ladybird (Aphidecta obliterata)
Capsus ater – a true bug

While some of these are easier than others, I have resisted the urge to include extremely common and familiar species which most apps will surely get right. Instead, the range of insect groups included should hopefully put our candidate apps to the test.

Comparing Insect Apps

Apps that identify the insect as their first choice will receive 1 point. If the correct insect is identified but shown as an outlying choice, we’ll deduct points for each subsequent tier. For example, Larch Ladybird coming in as the 4th most likely option would early 0.6 points. I may give extra points in some places if the apps manage to impress me…

	Oak Bush-cricket	Brown China-mark	Patchwork Leafcutter Bee	Platycheirus rosarum	Riponnensia splendens	Larch Ladybird	Capsus ater	Score (0-6)
ObsIdentify	✔ 1	✔1	✔ 0.9	✔ 1	✔ 1	✔ 1	✔ 1	6.9/7
Seek	✖	✔1	✖ 0.2 (It did get the family!)	✖	✖	✖	✖	0.2/7
Picture Insect	✔ 1	✔ 1	✔ 1	✔1	✖	✔ 1	✔ 1	6/7
Google Lens	✔ 1	✔ 1	✖ 0.2 (again, it got the family)	✖ 0.2	✖	✖ 0.2 (points for ‘ladybird’)	✖	2.6/7

ObsIdentify vs Picture Insect

And so we have our winner, or at least winners. Both ObsIdentify and Picture Insect performed extremely well during the first test and truth be told, there isn’t much between them. Let’s try them on a few more insects…

For this, we’ll trial the apps on the lovely Green Long-horn (Adela reaumurella), another true bug, Calocoris roseomaculatus, and the tiny Meadow Ladybird (Rhyzobius litura). A reasonably testing bunch!

	Green Long-horn	Calocoris roseomaculatus	Meadow Ladybird	Score (0-6)
ObsIdentify	✔1	✔ 0.9	✔ 0.9	2.8/3
Picture Insect	✔1	✖ 0.2 (it brought up a very similar species)	✖ 0.2 (again, a similar species but failed to mention this one)	1.4/3

ObsIdentify (9.7/10)

Hands down the best app for insect identification

ObsIdentify performed extremely well across all insect groups and must be considered the ‘go to’ app for identifying insects. Based on the positive reviews shared elsewhere, it is perhaps unsurprising that it identified the easier Oak Bush-cricket and Brown China-mark correctly, but it surprised by accurately ID’ing the two hoverflies. Hoverfly identification can often be an arduous affair so extra brownie points here.

Of the points 0.3 points deducted in total, on all occasions this was due to a separate but similar species being put forward as its primary identification. However, in all three cases, the true species was listed in second place which at least allows users to quickly compare species and reach a judgment for themselves.

On a more practical note, ObsIdentify is very user-friendly and provides no end of handy information that some users might find interesting. It also works on more than just insects and overall, is a well-rounded and very helpful app. Top marks!

Picture Insect (7.4/10)

Another good choice for insect enthusiasts but jut falling short

Picture Insect is a perfectly sound app and performs better than most. In the first round of testing, it excelled with the more familiar species and resulted in correct identifications when presented with more challenging species, particularly Capsus ater and Platycheirus rosarum. Both of these proved too much for apps further down the list.

A solid choice for second place, the app only fell short at the last hurdle, failing to identify Calocoris roseomaculatus and Meadow Ladybird very nearly nailed by ObsIdentify. Indeed, neither species were shown in the four available suggestions shown by Picture Insect, but it did at least put us in the right ball park.

While a good choice for use on common and familiar species, I did find the app somewhat annoying on account of the frequent pop-ups prompting paid subscription. The interface is also a little more complex that our winning option.

Google Lens (2.6/7)

This one ought to do better…

Google Lens is perhaps the most widely used app on this list, with a great many people using it for everything from foodstuffs to wildlife. Given the infrastructure behind it, it ought to have outperformed some of the less well-resourced apps but alas, failed at almost every hurdle.

Points were awarded for its success in identifying Oak Bush-cricket and Brown China-mark but beyond these, it succeeded only in correctly identifying several species to family level. If, like me, you like to know specifics, it probably isn’t for you.

Seek (1.1/7)

Not again iNaturalist…

When it comes to purpose-built wildlife identification apps, Seek by iNaturalist is perhaps the most widely known (and used) of all. Indeed, I frequently encounter students using the app at the recommendation of their lecturers and have chanced upon a fair number of naturalists using it the field. They shouldn’t bother.

Oh iNaturalist, what went wrong yet again? If you read my previous post on plant ID apps, you’ll know that Seek came almost last. It performed almost as negatively this time, succeeding only with the Brown China-mark. This is somewhat troubling given its widespread use and ties with what is fast becoming the most widespread biological recording app in the UK. Yikes.

I would avoid Seek save for its use in positive environmental engagement. Like iNaturalist who developed it, it makes wildlife recording fun and would be a great choice for weekend walks with the kids if little else.

Read Entire Article