This is a list of biodiversity databases. Biodiversity databases store
taxonomic
Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification.
A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...
information alone or more commonly also other information like distribution (spatial) data and ecological data, which provide information on the
biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
of a particular area or group of living organisms. They may store specimen-level information, species-level information, information on nomenclature, or any combination of the above. Most are available online.
Specimen-focused databases contain data about individual specimens, as represented by vouchered museum specimens, collections of specimen photographs, data on field-based specimen observations and morphological or genetic data. Species-focused databases contain information summarised at the species-level. Some species-focused databases attempt to compile comprehensive data about particular species (
FishBase
FishBase is a global species database of fish species (specifically finfish). It is the largest and most extensively accessed online database on adult finfish on the web. ), while others focus on particular species attributes, such as checklists of species in a given area (FEOW) or the conservation status of species (
CITES
CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of interna ...
or
IUCN Red List
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...
). Nomenclators act as summaries of taxonomic revisions and set a key between specimen-focused and species-focused databases. They do this because taxonomic revisions use specimen data to determine species limits.
See also
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Taxonomic database
A taxonomic database is a database created to hold information on biological taxa – for example groups of organisms organized by species name or other taxonomic identifier – for efficient data management and information retrieval. Taxonomic dat ...
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Biodiversity informatics Biodiversity informatics is the application of informatics techniques to biodiversity information, such as taxonomy, biogeography or ecology. Modern computer techniques can yield new ways to view and analyze existing information, as well as predict ...
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Global biodiversity
Global biodiversity is the measure of biodiversity on planet Earth and is defined as the total variability of life forms. More than 99 percent of all species that ever lived on Earth are estimated to be extinct. Estimates on the number of Earth ...
References
External links
List of species databases at the Catalogue of Life
List of biodiversity databases at Biodiversity Tools
{{DEFAULTSORT:Biodiversity databases
Databases
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases spa ...
Biological databases
Biology-related lists
Biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
Lists of websites