How BeachNut photo ID works

The most common complaint about identification apps is confident wrong answers. BeachNut is built the other way round: it separates seeing from naming, cites its evidence, and tells you when a photo is not good enough.

The five passes

1. 1. Describe, don't guess

   The first pass records only what is visible — shape, ridging, aperture, colour, wear, root or enamel on a tooth, surface texture — and rates the photo's usability. No species name is proposed yet, so a first impression cannot bias the rest.

2. 2. Shortlist by trait and place

   Those traits narrow the field guide to a working shortlist, weighted toward what actually occurs on Florida beaches rather than a global catalogue.

3. 3. Rank with evidence

   Each shortlisted candidate is scored against the recorded traits, and every match has to cite the specific features supporting it.

4. 4. Visually double-check

   When the leaders are close, or nothing scores well, your photo is compared side by side against field-guide reference art before a ranking is returned.

5. 5. Calibrate the confidence

   The 0–100 confidence is computed from the cited evidence and photo quality, not taken from the model's own wording. Weak photos get a lower number and specific retake advice.

Common questions

Do I get one answer or several?

Several. You get a ranked list with a confidence read, and every match links to its field-guide page so you can compare the markings yourself. Markings and exact colorations vary between individuals.

What makes a good photo?

Fill the frame, use daylight or even shade rather than harsh sun, place the find on a plain background, and photograph both sides. If the result is uncertain, BeachNut tells you what to change and a retake costs you nothing.

Do I need an account?

No. Anyone can run identifications from the public try page, three a day. A free account adds unlimited logged finds and your personal collection; Premium removes the daily identification cap.

Is my location shared?

No. If you allow location, the find is geotagged to the nearest beach in your own collection. Finds are private by default. If you choose to share a find publicly, exact coordinates stay hidden unless you explicitly attach them. We never sell your data.

What it will not do

It covers Florida beach finds — shells, shark teeth, fossils, sea glass, sea beans and beach pottery. It is not a rock, plant or animal identifier, and it is not a legal ruling on whether something may be collected. The local rule on the beach page is the authority.