treeapp is a free application that allows you to identify the wild trees of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. It provides images of the species, their description and some curiosities. 20 days after its launch, it had already exceeded 50,000 downloads.
“The objective is to transfer scientific knowledge to the public, in this case about Iberian trees, based on an experience that is available to anyone”, explained the person in charge of the project and vice president of the Higher Council for Scientific Research of Spain (CSIC). ), Pilar Tigeras. This organization was responsible for launching the application.Arbolapp includes 118 species of wild trees, those that grow without human intervention. They can be found by their scientific name, their common name, or by the family to which they belong. For each one, several images are shown along with their description and some curiosities.
“The interesting thing is that a playful experience, such as walking through a forest, can be transformed into learning, although we believe that it can also be an interesting didactic resource for teaching staff,” said Eduardo Actis, the project’s coordinator. As the application is designed to be used in the natural environment, once downloaded, the information will be available even without an Internet connection. The search can be done in two ways. One option is the guided method, which helps the user identify the tree ahead from a description of its visual characteristics. The other alternative is the open search, which allows species to be found based on different criteria, such as the province in which it is found or the particularities of its leaves, fruits and flowers.
“The contents are aimed at all those people who wish to start or deepen their knowledge of the trees in their environment. For this reason, an effort has been made to use accessible language and simple explanations without abandoning scientific rigor”, they explain on the application’s website. However, the information provided contains some technical terms. That is why the developers have tried to include a glossary. A multidisciplinary team took part in the development of the application, working on the selection of species, taking photographs, preparing texts and developing the graphic line. The information provided is based on research carried out by the CSIC Botanical Garden. Download link for Android Download link for iOSSources:ArbolappThe CSIC launches Arbolapp, a free app to identify treesThe ‘Arbolapp’ mobile application exceeds 50,000 downloads in 20 daysIdentify trees with your mobile? Now you can, with Arbolapp