Woodlots Google the answer. Which makes me wonder what will happen to true knowledge. Will anyone be an expert or just the fastest at getting the answer from a screen? Up until 2013, when I walked a forest with landowners and pointed out the species that I observed, I always thought that they believed me. Why wouldn’t they? In 2013, I remember walking a landowners’ forest with his entire family and a couple of friends, as none of them had any knowledge of nature or forest management and wanted to learn. I got to show their children a Jack-in-the-Pulpit for the first time. A bird called out and I identified it for them to include in their Managed Forest Tax Incentive Plan. We continued a little further and I heard the bird again. Then one of the landowners said, “You were right. It was that bird.”’ She played the call again on her phone. It was nice to be reassured that I knew my bird call identification, but blew me out of my boots to see how easy it was for this person to get this information. In 2013, I was still using a flip phone and had never used an app. I now carry a smartphone and
thought I would download some forestry-related apps. I downloaded three identification apps, two mapping apps, and three forestry calculator apps. Of these eight apps, I have used one of them just enough to learn what a great tool it is. I haven’t gotten on to any of the identification apps as I get frustrated in the organization of the information. In any field guide, keys are used to determine the specimen that you are working with. To use the keys you must understand the defining characteristics of flora or fauna. For example, is the leaf edge (margin) serrated or smooth? The apps that I Recently and unintentionally , I’ve have looked at are more simplified, made a significant shift in how I look as in take a picture and the app will for help when identifying a new or identify the plant. The difficulty that unusual plant. I have with this form of identification For most of my adult life, I have is that the user must be able to enjoyed going to a bookstore to look determine if the app is correct and at the selection in the Science and should not rely on identification that Nature Section. These two interest hasn’t been proven. The app doesn’t areas were often grouped together on know that it is giving a false the shelf and were occasionally identification any differently than an accompanied by Gardening. It amateur naturalist would without seemed that new tree identification working alongside a knowledgeable and forestry books didn’t come out associate. Of course, a book is no very often. When I found a new different for ensuring accuracy. book, I hoped to buy it which is a However, it was explained to me that fact that would surprise every teacher the drawings in identification guides that had to try to work with are of greater value than me. Simply put, these books photos as our interested me. Over the interpretation of the years I have amassed a drawing will be broader decent library of both recent as it is not a true picture and historic forest and of the specimen. When nature-related reference looking at a photo we books. It’s a library that I assume that the subject am quite proud of. Now I within the photo appears am wondering what will exactly as pictured, happen to it – and others when in fact all living like it – in the future. things can vary greatly Early in my career, when in appearance even you wanted to identify a within the same species. plant species and an For this reason, I still experienced person wasn’t prefer field guides that available, you needed have drawings over multiple guides to identify those with photographs. anything that was not in A perfect example of the flower. Wildflower guides effects of pictures gave you the answer to a versus drawings can be plant in flower. But I also experienced when needed medicinal, edible, looking at a photo of wildflower, and something that makes horticultural plant guides in Avenza maps is a free app which is widely used and you uncomfortable as hopes of finding the answer. recommended by forestry professionals as a mapping and opposed to a drawing. I Now, I frequently navigation tool. Donna Lacey is a forester with the Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority
What will happen to all our guide books?
46 The Rural Voice
