Optimizing biodiversity informatics to improve information flow, data quality, and utility for science and society

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_D9D8E43B16B0
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Optimizing biodiversity informatics to improve information flow, data quality, and utility for science and society
Journal
Frontiers of Biogeography
Author(s)
Anderson R.P., Araújo M.B., Guisan A., Lobo J.M., Martínez-Meyer E., Peterson A.T., Soberón J.M.
Publication state
Published
Issued date
2020
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
12
Number
3
Pages
e47839
Language
english
Abstract
Vast amounts of Primary Biodiversity Data exist online (~109 records, each documenting an individual species at a point in space and time). These data hold immense but unrealized promise for science and society, including use in biogeographic research addressing issues such as zoonotic diseases, invasive species, threatened species and habitats, and climate change. Ongoing and envisioned changes in biodiversity informatics involving data providers, aggregators, and users should catalyze improvements to allow efficient use of such data for diverse analyses. We discuss relevant issues by considering needs for modeling species distributions (currently their most common use). Key cross-cutting principles for progress include harnessing feedback from users and increasing incentives for improving data quality. Critical challenges include: (1) establishing individual and collective stable unique identifiers across all of biodiversity science, (2) highlighting issues regarding data quality and representativeness, and (3) improving feedback mechanisms. Such changes should lead to ever-better data and increased utility and impact, including greater data integration with various research areas within and beyond biogeography (e.g., population demography, biotic interactions, physiology, and genetics). Building on existing pilot functionalities, biodiversity informatics could see transformative changes over the coming decade via a combination of community consensus building, coordinated efforts to justify and secure funding, and technical innovations.
Keywords
bias, biodiversity, citizen science, environment, herbarium, informatics, natural history museum, occurrence, range, uncertainty
Create date
25/05/2020 16:16
Last modification date
22/01/2021 6:24
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