Lucid Player - The identification process
You will perform an identification in the Player by selecting a set of character states that match the specimen you wish to identify. Suppose, for instance, that one of the characters in your key concerns palps:
The character “Palps” has two states, “Present” and “Absent”. Think of this character as a question: “Does your specimen have palps, or not?”. If your specimen lacks palps, then select the state “absent”. The player will then search its database to find all taxa that lack palps, and display a list of these in a window called Taxa Remaining.
Suppose another character concers cerci:
If your specimen has short cerci and you select that state, the Player will search its database again, and the Taxa Remaining window will now show all taxa without palps and with short cerci. Selecting states from more and more characters should progressively reduce the number of taxa in Taxa Remaining until, perhaps, only one remains. You have identified your specimen. The name the Player has provided can now be used to find information on that taxon.
The Player provides many tools and options that can make your task of identification easier. You can view images of character states (if these have been provided by the key author) to help you make a choice between states, ask the Player to determine the most discriminating character to answer next, or ask for a comparison between two or more taxa, and more.
FAQs