Seek starts the curiosity. Nature By Name keeps the name.
Seek, from the iNaturalist team, identifies plants and animals through your camera. No account and no data sharing, which makes it great for families.
Once it gives you the name, it is done. Five minutes later the name is already wobbling.
Nature By Name is the follow-up: the species you keep finding come back in short sessions until Trillium stops feeling brand new.
Seek: point and find out
Instant identification and badges for what you have found. Exciting in the moment, with nothing to bring it back later.
Nature By Name: come back to it
You name species from memory, and each comes back just before you would forget it. After a few weeks the name arrives before the camera does.
Side by side
| Seek | Nature By Name | |
|---|---|---|
| Main job | Identify through the camera | Learn to name species yourself |
| Account | None needed | Needed, so progress follows you |
| Practice and review | None | Scheduled recall with FSRS |
| Progress | Badges for species found | What you know, what is due and what keeps tripping you up |
Using them together
Use Seek to discover. Use Nature By Name to remember. If you also post to iNaturalist, import those observations and study them here.
Reach for Seek when
- You want instant identification without an account
- You want a private, kid-friendly app
- You want to explore with no commitment
Reach for Nature By Name when
- You want to remember species without an app
- You want short, regular practice
- You want progress saved to your account
What people ask for
“When I travel, it would be great to be able to use iNaturalist to learn the local biota before I get there.”
iNaturalist Forum. Read the post
“I enjoy making IDs to test my skills, but it would be nice to be able to do that on items that are already research grade without knowing what they are.”
iNaturalist Forum. Read the post
Remember what you discover.
Other comparisons: iNaturalist · Merlin · Anki · eBird · BirdWise · Field guides