Geng Report: Orchid Diversity and Distribution Patterns in Wumeng Mountain National Nature Reserve — Data Integrity and Editorial Errors

Academic fraud report · Geng Detector

Summary

This report flags a preprint (DOI: 10.11931/guihaia.gxzw202504028, ChinaXiv, intended for Guihaia) concerning orchid diversity in Wumeng Mountain National Nature Reserve as highly suspicious. The overall verdict is 🟠 "highly suspicious," primarily due to serious arithmetic inconsistencies in Table 2 rather than image fabrication. The sum of individual counts across sub-areas (Sanjiangkou 992 + Luohanba 362 + Xiaocaoba 1077 + Haiziping 1058 = 3489) exceeds the stated total of 2776 by 713, and the altitude-band sum (437 + 649 + 88 + 1666 + 644 = 3484) exceeds the total by 708, with the two cross-tabulations themselves not matching. Additional issues include mismatched years between English and Chinese reference entries (Li et al. listed as 2010 in English vs. 2022 in Chinese; Zhang cited as 2007 in references but 2008 in text), a Shannon-Wiener value discrepancy (4.0356 in abstract vs. 4.0359 in Table 2), and a formula typo (ln misspelled as "In"). The author notes benign explanations remain possible for the summation error (e.g., overlapping quadrat counts).

Verdict

🟠 Highly suspicious. No evidence of image manipulation was detected, but the manuscript contains multiple elementary data-handling and editorial errors that collectively undermine confidence in the rigor of the study. The highest-severity concern is the unreconcilable arithmetic contradiction in Table 2.

Key findings

Arithmetic inconsistency in Table 2 (severity: 🟠). Sub-area totals sum to 3489 individuals, yet the stated overall total is 2776 — a surplus of 713. Altitude-band totals sum to 3484, exceeding the total by 708. The two sub-dimensions also disagree with each other.
Misaligned reference years (severity: 🟠, confirmed). Li et al. is cited as 2010 in the English reference list but 2022 in the Chinese bracket and in the in-text citation. Zhang Yuwu is listed as 2007 in the references but cited as 2008 in the discussion.
Core index value discrepancy (severity: 🟡, confirmed). The abstract reports DMG (Shannon-Wiener) = 4.0356, while Section 2.3 and Table 2 report 4.0359.
Formula typo (severity: 🟡, confirmed). The Shannon-Wiener formula uses "In" instead of "ln" for the natural logarithm; one of the symbols is also capitalized incorrectly.

Evidence highlights

DOI: 10.11931/guihaia.gxzw202504028 (ChinaXiv preprint, intended for *Guihaia*).
Table 2 totals: overall = 2776; sub-area sum = 992 + 362 + 1077 + 1058 = 3489 (+713); altitude-band sum = 437 + 649 + 88 + 1666 + 644 = 3484 (+708).
Reference inconsistency: "LIDC, SONGXQ, ZHANGZ, et al., 2010" vs. "[李大程, 宋希强, 张哲, 等, 2022]..."; in-text citation uses "(李大程等, 2022)". "ZHANGWY, 2007" referenced in text as "(张玉武, 2008)".
Metric discrepancy: abstract DMG = 4.0356; Section 2.3 / Table 2 overall DMG = 4.0359.
Formula: "H′=-∑PjInPi, Pi=Ni/N" — "In" should be "ln".

Notes

The summation discrepancy is currently flagged as potentially benign (e.g., overlapping quadrat counts or transcription errors) and requires the authors' raw field data to resolve. The other three findings are confirmed editorial errors rather than statistical or methodological concerns. Verification of the authors' original counting records is recommended before any formal misconduct determination.