Species and taxonomy databases
Names, threat status, distributions and the records behind them.
32 resources
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GBIF
Global occurrence records
Download occurrence records for a species or region as the starting dataset for range and gap analysis
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IUCN Red List
Global threat assessments
Establish what threat category a species carries, then read the assessment rationale rather than just the label
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Catalogue of Life
Names backbone
Resolve a scientific name against the global taxonomic backbone before joining datasets built on different name sources
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ITIS
Taxonomic names, strongest for North America
Match North American names to a stable federal taxonomy when reconciling a US agency dataset
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Encyclopedia of Life
Species pages and an education arm
Pull ready-made species pages and trait data when building education material rather than writing from scratch
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NatureServe Explorer
Conservation status ranks including plants and invertebrates, North America
Look up a subnational rank for plants and invertebrates the global Red List has never assessed
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Species+
CITES and CMS listings per species
Confirm the current CITES appendix and CMS listing for a species before planning any cross-border shipment
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Map of Life
Range maps and indicators
Overlay modeled ranges to see what should occur at a site you have not yet surveyed
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Reptile Database
Reptile taxonomy
Check whether a reptile name is current before publishing, since the group is split and renamed constantly
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Amphibian Species of the World
Amphibian taxonomy
Settle amphibian nomenclature against the reference most herpetological journals expect authors to follow
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AmphibiaWeb
Amphibian species accounts
Read a species account and the current global amphibian count when scoping a project or proposal
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Amphibian Conservation Needs Assessments
Per-species conservation needs
See which specific actions experts think a species needs, which is more actionable than a threat category
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Mammal Diversity Database
Mammal taxonomy
Track mammal taxonomic changes so a species list built last year still matches what reviewers expect
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All The World's Primates
Primate species accounts
Look up a primate species account when scoping surveys in a region you do not know
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Elephant Database
Elephant records
Look up historic captive and wild elephant records when reconstructing a population history
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Rhino Resource Center
Rhino literature and images
Search decades of rhino literature and imagery, including old reports that never reached the journals
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AnimalBase
Early zoological names and types
Trace an early zoological name to its original description and type material when resolving a nomenclatural problem
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Avian Knowledge Network
Bird data network
Access pooled US bird monitoring data across agencies instead of negotiating with each one separately
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FishBase
Fish species data
Pull life history traits, length weight relationships and diet data for stock and vulnerability work
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Shark-Base
Elasmobranch records
Check elasmobranch records when compiling a regional shark and ray species list
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OBIS
Marine occurrences
Download marine occurrence data for a sea area, then check publisher country to judge sampling bias
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WoRMS
Marine species register
Validate marine species names against the accepted register before submitting occurrence data anywhere
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GlobalFungi
Fungal occurrence database
Query soil fungal sequence occurrences when asking whether a habitat's fungal community is documented at all
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SEINet / Symbiota
Herbarium networks with a checklist generator
Generate a herbarium-backed plant checklist for a site, with specimen records standing behind every name
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Calflora
California plant occurrences and rarity
Map documented occurrences of a rare California plant before ground-truthing a proposed development site
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Jepson eFlora
California flora
Key out a California plant and confirm which name the state's floristic standard accepts
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antmaps.org
Ant distributions
Compare ant species lists between two regions to see which introductions are already established
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Recently Extinct Plants and Animals Database
Extinctions including plants and invertebrates
Check whether a species is already treated as extinct, including plants and invertebrates most lists skip
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World Database of Key Biodiversity Areas
KBA boundaries and triggers
Check whether your project area sits inside a Key Biodiversity Area and which species triggered it
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Alliance for Zero Extinction
AZE sites and species
Find out if a site holds the only population of a threatened species, which reframes the funding case
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Local Biodiversity Outlooks
Community biodiversity reporting
Cite community-authored case studies when arguing that local and Indigenous action delivers the global targets
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snakeDB
Referenced venom and LD50 data for snake research
Look up venom and LD50 figures with a source attached, rather than numbers that circulate without one