Wanted to share an iPhone app I recently found on the app store that has made me rethink the usefulness of mobile devices in field identifications. Previously I thought most apps to be so broadly put together that they could not actually help accurately identify a snake. But this app "TX Snakes" is made very differently, it actually incorporates the county records of all the snakes in Texas. Pretty cool if you ask me, I mean how much more specific can you get? While it takes a keen eye and experience to make difficult species identifications, having the ability to narrow your list of possibilities down to just a few snakes is quite nice.
Although what I find most compelling about the app was actually just being able to have the knowledge of whether I found a county record or not.
The developer website says they are also coming out with with a Oklahoma Snakes app. Would like to see New Mexico and Arizona next.
Is this the wave of the future? When can you take a photo of a snake and have Genus, Species and Subspecies returned instantly?
www.herpapps.com
