Taxonomic Services
This is a DRAFT – please send us your comments and suggestions.
The ALA needs to support the integration of data resources which may vary greatly in their use of scientific names (and common names) and classifications. Some resources will include scientific names no longer in use (e.g. because they are regarded as synonyms of earlier names, or the species has been moved to a different genus, or the species has been combined into another species) or will follow a taxonomic hierarchy which differs from that accepted by other resources for the same species.
The ALA will use the names and classification shared through the AFD/APC Service as the primary taxonomic structure to which it will relate all Australian biodiversity data (although at present neither AFD nor APC is complete).
To make this possible, the ALA will need tools to:
- Determine whether a species or higher taxon exists in the AFD or APC to which each data item can be related (even if there are differences in classification or if the AFD or APC consider the supplied name to be a synonym)
- Otherwise, determine the best point to which to connect data items for species not included in the AFD or APC hierarchy (e.g. to connect a new species to an existing genus, or a family to an order) – this is important to allow the ALA to give overviews of all data relating to a higher taxon
- Link alternative taxonomies and additional sources of data on the scientific and common names and classification for Australian and adventive species
- Offer web services for users and web sites to be able to explore the names and classification of Australian organisms and to integrate this information into their own systems
- Allow users to browse or search for data using either the AFD/APC taxonomy or another classification or checklist to organise the information – for example to find data using a red list, CITES list or state checklist
The GBIF Data Portal software which the ALA intends to reuse for its Geospatial Data Harvesting already includes code to address many of these needs. The ALA therefore expects to use this code as the foundation for developing its Taxonomic Services.
