Observations
An observation is a fish you saw without catching it, for example a rise, fish at the surface or a shoal near the shore. By noting the species and the place, you remember where there were fish, even if you did not get a bite.
You will find your observations in the Journal. Choose Observations in the row at the top. It is the last one in the row, so on a narrow screen you may need to swipe the row a little to the side to see it. There you can also filter by period and sort by date.
Logging an observation
- Tap the plus button (Add) in the middle of the menu bar at the bottom, and choose Log observation.
- Choose the species and the place. Both must be filled in.
- Adjust the time if needed, and write a note if you like (for example "strong rises by the reed bed").
- Tap Save observation.
You can also set an exact point on the observation, in the same way as on a catch.
Observations in a fishing session
If you see fish while you are out on a trip, you can add the observation straight into the fishing session: open the Observations card in the session and tap Add observation. The observation then automatically takes the session's place and time, and is shown on the session's detail page afterwards.
From the map
You will also find an Add observation button under Reported species in the location details on the map. The water is then already filled in, and you only choose the species you saw. If you do not share species data yet, there is a Turn on species sharing button there instead, which takes you straight to the privacy settings.
If you hold your finger on a water on the map for a moment, you can also choose to add an observation exactly there. Both the place and the exact point are then filled in, see Add straight from the map.
Editing or deleting an observation
Open the observation from the journal. There you will find Edit observation and Delete observation, as well as Show on map and Correct position for moving the point. An observation that belongs to a fishing session is edited from the session. In that case there is a button, Show the fishing session, that takes you there.
See what others have observed
Under Reported species on a water you can see the species other anglers have logged there. This is free for everyone and shown anonymously: the species, the number of reports and when the species was last seen, but never who was fishing and never exact points. The same data is behind the Reported species map layer.
What are observations used for?
Observations are your own notes. They do not count in the statistics, do not unlock fish species and give no achievements. An observation is not a catch, but a reminder of where you have seen fish.
Who can see the observation?
At the bottom of the form it says Who can see this?. An observation has neither a weight nor a photo, so what your friends see is the species, which water and when you saw the fish. If you choose No place, they see the species and the time, but not which water. If you choose Private, the observation is yours alone.
If you have set an exact point and choose Friends, your friends can also see the point. With No place or Private, nobody else sees it.
Observations and shared species data
If you share species data, observations are shared anonymously in the same way as catches: the species, the water and the time, and a point rounded to about 50 meters, never your exact point. Only Friends is sent in. Observations you have set to No place or Private are kept out, and the water is never published in the shared species data. If you do not share species data, nothing is shared.
Confirmed or unconfirmed species
Under Reported species on a water, each species is marked Confirmed or Unconfirmed. The explanation is behind the info button at the top right of the box. Confirmed means that the species has either been reported many times in that water, or that it has been quality checked by MinFangst. Unconfirmed means that there are still too few reports to say for certain. The species may well be found there anyway.