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Story: DIGIT Seed Money Awarded to 17 Projects
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Click on the image to enlarge
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Approximately US$710,000 has been awarded to 17 projects from around the world. Successful completion of these projects will bring over 1,000,000 specimen records, including over 70,000 digital images of type specimens, online by the end of 2004.
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| Released on: |
18 September 2003 |
| Contributor: |
Meredith Lane |
| Language: |
English |
Spatial coverage: |
Not applicable |
Keywords: |
GBIF, DIGIT, seed money |
| Source of information: |
GBIF Secretariat |
| Concerned URL: |
http://www.gbif.org/prog/digit |
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DIGIT.htm
The DIGIT Request for Proposals for seed money awards solicited the
following types of projects:
- Completion of the work needed to make currently digitised
specimen label information associated with natural history collections
publicly accessible using common data standards.
- Development of new and innovative approaches to the capture and
interpretation of specimen label information, the geo-referencing of
label localities or the development of community resources that
facilitate these processes.
- Electronic cataloguing and imaging of type specimens.
Proposals were evaluated for scientific excellence. In addition, they
were evaluated on how well they supported the GBIF philosophy by
demonstrating a commitment to making the resulting data freely
available and addressing issues of data compatibility and
interoperability. Review criteria included:
- Emphasis on data-sharing with countries of origin
- Components for training and capacity building, especially
potential for long term capacity building and training of curators and
technicians in all aspects of the specimen digitization process, in
particular training of staff from partner institutions in developing
countries
- Potential for the earliest possible access to large data sets
- Potential for networking and building increased 'Natural History
Collections Community' collaboration
- Potential for international collaboration
- Potential for leveraging additional long term funding to support
the specimen digitization process
- Potential for testing and documenting digitization 'Best
Practices'
- Linkage with existing projects (including projects with an ECAT
aspect)
These seed money awards will leverage approximately $2.8 million US in
investment in natural history collections digitization activities world
wide. Successful completion of the 17 funded projects will result, by
the end of 2004, in the digitisation of more than 1,000,000 specimen
records, including more than 70,000 records of type specimens. In
addition, 800,000 digitised specimen records will be geo-referenced and
made accessible via the Internet. Of the 17 projects, 10 are in
the first category listed above, 6 are in category three, and 1 is in
category two.
Titles of the projects serve as links to more
detailed information, below.
Project Coordinator:
Reed Beaman
Amount: $50000
Managing Institution: Yale University
New Haven CT USA
Title: Biogeomancer: Georeferencing web services for natural history
collections
Abstract: The project will develop and deploy interoperable web
services to provide automated georeferencing for the biodiversity
collections community. These services, implemented using the
Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP), will geoparse and georeference
biological specimen location data, calculate spatial error estimates,
and provide interoperability with collection databases, gazetteer
services, and distributed information retrieval protocols. The project
will also document best use practices for georeferencing natural
history specimens.
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Project Coordinator: Javier Beltrán
Amount: $50000
Managing Institution: Museo Argentino de Ciencias
Naturales
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Participant Institutions: Buenos Aires University, CENPAT, Darwinion
Institute, Fundación Instituto Miguel Lillo, IADIZA Institute,
IBONE, IMBIV, INTA, La Plata Museum, MACN, San Luis University, Scaglia
Museum, UNNE
Title: The National Network of Collections – pilot datasets and seed
money for triggering the electronic release of biodiversity information
across Argentina.
Abstract: The National Network of Collections (RNC) is a repository of
well above ten million specimens, botanic numbers and other biological
samples representing the large biodiversity that characterizes
Argentina. Label information has traditionally been stored, shared,
exchanged and disseminated in an ad hoc fashion: each RNC member
organization adopted its own approach to information management. As a
result, it has been difficult for processed data and information to
flow smoothly across the Network and beyond. This proposal describes an
RNC-driven attempt to enhance the ability of collections – and of the
Network as a whole, to make specimen and observation data available
over the Internet. A total 13 datasets will be used to pilot a
harmonized approach to knowledge management; GBIF assistance is sought
for expanding the capacity of data custodians to digitize a large
number of specimen-band records and release them into the information
loop. This will be achieved by: a) adopting a de-centralised
information management system; b) updating and harmonizing IC
technology; c) providing training; and d) hiring manpower for
digitization. It is estimated that at the end of the first year,
metadata on pilot collections and data on around 213,000 specimens
would be available to the wide user community.
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Project Coordinator: Francisco Cejas
Amount: $14526
Managing Institution: Centro Nacional de
Biodiversidad (CeNBio), Instituto de Ecología y
Sistemática (IES)
Havana, Cuba
Participating Institutions: Herbario Nacional del Instituto de
Ecología y Sistemática (National Herbarium of the
Institute of Ecology an d Systematics) (HAC), Colecciones
Zoológicas de la Academia de Ciencias de Cuba (Zoological
Collections of the Cuban Academy of Sciences) (CZACC) and Colecciones
Marinas del Instituto de Oceanología (Marine Collections of the
Institute of Oceanology) (IDO)
Title: Digitization of type specimens from the main Cuban biological
collections data
Abstract: Cuba, the largest island in the Caribbean, plays a leading
role within the region having an endemic species for every 12.07 km2.
Endemism in vascular plants is 49.5%, mollusks, 94.7%, insects 30.68%,
amphibians and reptiles 93.4 and 75.2% respectively and mammals 39.47 %.
The species richness of the Cuban flora and fauna, endemics included,
is well represented in the Herbario Nacional del Instituto de
Ecología y Sistemática (National Herbarium of the
Institute of Ecology an d Systematics) (HAC), Colecciones
Zoológicas de la Academia de Ciencias de Cuba (Zoological
Collections of the Cuban Academy of Sciences) (CZACC) and Colecciones
Marinas del Instituto de Oceanología (Marine Collections of the
Institute of Oceanology) (IDO), which are the main biological
collections in Cuba, housing more than 450000, 910000 and 15106
specimens respectively, and over 2000, 2367 and 153 type specimens.
This project will contribute to the maintenance and conservation of the
main Cuban biological collections, by means of the digitization of
almost 4500 types deposited in these institutions, allowing results to
be catalogued and published and therefore making valuable data
available to the public.
The input of data and images will be carried out independently in each
Collection, and copies will be kept in the Centro Nacional de
Biodiversidad (National Center of Biodiversity) (CeNBio), located at
the Institute of Ecology and Systematics, being the Technical Focal
Point of the Cuban CHM.
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Project
Coordinator: B.J. Conn
Amount: $49800
Managing Institution: Royal Botanic Gardens and
Domain Trust
Sydney, NSW, Australia
Participating Institutions: Papua New Guinea National Herbarium
Title: Repatriation of Electronic Accession Data to the Papua New
Guinea National Herbarium
Abstract: This project will develop a low-maintenance, cost-effective
internet-accessible herbarium accession database (PNGplants) for use by
the Papua New Guinea National Herbarium (LAE). Initially, the database
will be populated by the repatriation of replicate electronic data of
the LAE herbarium held at four major Australian herbaria. The PNGplants
database will be initially managed off-site by the National Herbarium
of New South Wales (NSW) to minimise risks to the project, particularly
by reducing the hardware and software costs at LAE and the need for LAE
staff to undertake specialised highly skilled Information Technology
training. LAE staff will begin the process of digitising collections
held at LAE. These independent electronic records (at LAE) will be
accessible via the “Plants of Papua New Guinea” website, an extension
of the “Australia’s Virtual Herbarium” (AVH) initiative. LAE will
become a joint Herbaria contributor to the AVH project, together with
the other major Australian. Data will be used for the mapping of
species distributions; analysis of areas of endemism, species richness,
and ecological preferences; environmental management decisions; and
analysis of botanical exploration within Papua New Guinea.
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Project Coordinator: Christiane Denys
Amount: $30500
Managing Institution: Muséum National
d´Histoire Naturelle
Paris, France
Participating Institutions: Laboratoire de
Mammalogie IRD, Bamako, MALI
Title: Sahelo-Sudanian Rodent Database: Completion of Digitisation and
On Line Publishing
Abstract: The aims of this project are to bring together data currently
handled in two databases located at the Muséum National
d’Histoire Naturelle (MNHN) and the Institut de Recherche pour le
Développement (IRD) on Sahelo-Sudanian rodents, and to make them
available on the Internet using common standards.
The African countries concerned are Mauritania, Senegal, Mali,
Burkina-Faso, Niger and Chad. They represent a region where rodent
specific diversity is both high and at the origin of various problems
for agriculture and human health. Recent research results, especially
in the fields of cytogenetics and molecular biology, have significantly
improved the taxonomy in this group, and species naming in the
databases here considered reflects these updates. A special effort in
geo-referencing the specimens included has also been made, thanks to
the collaboration with researchers located within the targeted
countries. As a final product, this project will make publicly
available information on several thousand rodent specimens, most of
which will ultimately be deposited in the MNHN collections, as
classical museum specimens, but also in the form of organ samples in
ethanol (for molecular studies) and/or bone marrow extracts or
cryopreserved cells (for cytogenetical or other biomolecular uses).
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Project coordinator: Daniel L. Graf
Amount: $49650
Managing Institution: The Academy of Natural Sciences
Philadelphia, USA
Title: Georeferencing the Malacology Collection of the Academy of
Natural Sciences
Abstract: We will complete the task of georeferencing the Malacology
Collection of the Academy of Natural Sciences. The major hurdle of
capturing the verbatim catalogue locality data has already been
accomplished; coupled with those previously computerized, those records
exceed 440,000 lots. Our largely automated process for georeferencing
includes indexing our localities according to the NIMA and USGS place
name servers. Our specimen locality records will also be indexed
according to their degree of precision and accuracy. The reliability of
this automated process will be verified against precise expedition
records and through mapping to check consistency. We will serve our
results to the public through various Internet sources, including our
current web-accessible collection database.
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Project
Coordinator: Jaime Güemes
Amount: $50000
Managing Institution: Universitat de València
(Estudi General)
Valencia, Spain
Participating Institutions: Universidade Técnica de Lisboa,
Jardim Botânico da Madeira, Universidad de Alicante, Sociedad
Aranzadi, Universidad de Barcelona, Universidad del País Vasco,
Jardín Botánico de Córdoba, Universidad de Oviedo,
Universidad de Granada, Universidad de Gerona, Universidad de
Almería, Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología, Real
Jardín Botánico, Universidad Complutense, Universidad de
Salamanca, Universidad de Santiago, Universidad de Valencia
Title: Spanish and Portuguese Platform for Botanical Diversity Data
Online
Abstract: This proposal is presented by the AHIM (Asociación de
Herbarios Ibero- Macarónesico; http://www.ahim.org), which has
been fostering co-operation among
Portuguese and Spanish herbaria since 1994. A priority of the
association since its beginning is herbarium databasing which has been
supported in various ways: 1.- adoption of a standard tool for
herbarium databasing (Herbar); 2.- training seminars; 3.- and support
for legacy data recovery. Currently, c. 6.5 million botanical specimens
are kept in the c. 65 Portuguese and Spanish herbaria.
This proposal aims to put on the Internet data from about 400.000
specimens and provide training to enable databasing projects to be
started or reactivated in other herbaria. In order to achieve this, the
proposal identifies the blocks and constrains in making data from
botanical collection in Spain and Portugal available and specifically
target areas where efforts would be more rewarding. Five types of
actions are identified: 1.-Support for putting collection data already
databased and validated on the Internet; 2.-Support for data validation
and quality improvement of collection databases; 3.- Support for legacy
data conversion and recovery; 4.- Support for capacity building; and 5-
Support for data sharing. These actions will be carried out by 17
institutions of Spain and Portugal, with the more representative
collections of these countries, and with a good track of achievement
and comprises the larger and more important collections in these
countries.
The partners and tasks to be performed by each one have been selected
seeking effectiveness and efficiency. The project is conceived as a
community effort that draws together curators and collection managers
of herbaria of two countries.
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Project
Coordinator: J.N. Labat
Amount: $49795
Managing Institution: Muséum National
d´Histoire Naturelle
Paris, France
Title: Botanical Collections on the Web for the World MNHN Herbarium
digitized including type specimens imaging, a pilot project for two
families of flowering plants and for an historical collection of
“cryptogams”
Abstract: The finalization of clear objectives for a long haul project
is proposed as part of a general effort aiming to improve the
scientific value and availability of the taxonomic plant collections
hosted in the Paris Herbarium (MNHN, P & PC). The treatment of two
important families of tropical flowering plants (Solanaceae and
Orchidaceae) as well as a collection of cryptogams (fungi, bryophytes,
algae, lichens), the so-called “Montagne's herbarium” will be
performed. This involves digitalizing more than 130,000 data entries
including 8,600 type specimens. The databases will be completed by
digitalisation of nomenclatural types and original drawings. The
requested GBIF support will allow rapid data-sharing on the web and
access for countries of origin of the specimens as well as for the
scientific community.
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Project
Coordinator: Keiichi Matsuura
Amount: $30000
Managing Institution: National Science Museum
Tokyo, Japan
Participating Institutions: Hokkaido University Museum, Hakodate; Ocean
Research Institute, University of Tokyo; Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of
Natural History, Odawara; Yokosuka City Museum, Yokosuka; Fisheries
Research Station, Mie University, Shima; Osaka Museum of Natural
History, Osaka; Kyoto University Museum; Tokushima Prefectural
Museum, Tokushima; Kochi University, Kochi
Title: Fish Databases of Japan
Abstract: Fish databases of Japan comprises: 1) image database of type
specimens in major Japanese museums and universities, which
provide digitized photographs of type specimens, X-ray
photographs, original illustrations (when available), and reference
data of original publications, 2) fish collections maintained in major
Japanese museums and universities, 3) distribution map database on the
basis of collection database, 4) English version of fish image, 5) full
mtDNA sequence of fishes including with voucher specimen data, and 6)
fish identification tool, using countable characters to identify 4200
bony fish species in Japan and the adjacent region.
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Project
Coordinator: Angela E. Newton
Amount: $47354
Managing Institution: The Natural History Museum
London, UK
Title: Digitization of type specimens of bryophytes in the Natural
History Museum, England
Abstract: This project will make available moss type data for specimens
of the Hypnales at the Natural History Museum that are currently
inaccessible. Putative type specimens, label and protologue
information will be digitized and this information made freely
available over the web via the NHM and through the MOST bryophyte
taxonomic website at Missouri Botanical Garden. This will include
database information for at least 6000 specimens, and digital images of
these specimens and original taxonomic descriptions of ca. 1500
scientific names. A manual of best practice for digitisation of
cryptogamic type specimens will be produced in collaboration with the
National Museum of Natural History and other botanical
institutions.
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Project
Coordinator: David A. Simpson
Amount: $45944
Managing Institution: Royal Botanic Gardens
Kew, UK
Title: Electronic Cataloguing and Imaging of Monocotyledon Type
Specimens at Kew
Abstract: GBIF funding will enable RBG Kew to digitise 5000 Monocot
types from Africa as part of an overall Monocot type specimen
digitisation project. The product will be a catalogue of Kew's Monocot
type specimens with associated images. Free-of-charge access to the
data and images will be available to all through a dedicated website.
Data will be captured using Kew's new specimen cataloguing system
(HerbCat), and imaging will be carried out with scanners that are
located upside down on specially designed cradles. The project will
allow Kew to test this innovative system with a high level of
throughput.
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Project
Coordinator: Jorge Soberón Mainero
Amount: $50000
Managing Institution: The National Commission for the
Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity of Mexico (Conabio)
Mexico City, Mexico
Participating Institutions: Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis,
Missouri, USA
Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad, Santo Domingo de Heredia, Costa
Rica
Title: Digitisation and Data Quality Control of Mexican and Central
American Botanical Specimens Held at the Missouri Botanical Garden
Herbarium
Abstract: Missouri Botanical Garden (MoBot), The National Commission
for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity of Mexico (Conabio), and The
National Biodiversity Institute of Costa Rica (INBio) will work
collaboratively in order to make web-available quality-assessed data of
Mesoamerican specimens, held at the MpBOT TROPICOS node in the RIMIB
network. The aim of this project is to assess and upgrade data quality
of botanical specimens in Mexico and Central America maintained at the
MOBOT database. Taxonomic and informatics experts from recognized
institutions will collaborate, while capacity building would benefit
participant institutions. Web-available geo-referenced specimen data at
node of MOBOT for Mesoamerica would provide an outstanding amount of
data for the region, that would benefit basic and applied scientific
research.
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Project
Coordinator: Barbara M. Thiers
Amount: $48945
Managing Institution: New York Botanical Garden
Bronx, NY, U.S.A.
Title: Completing the Type Index for Mushrooms and Related Groups of
Fungi (Agaricales and Gasteromycetales)
Abstract: This project will complete the Type Index for Mushrooms and
Related Groups of Fungi (Agaricales and Gasteromycetales) as part of
the New York Botanical Garden’s Virtual Herbarium. The work will
include cataloging 5500 type specimens and associating with them images
of type specimens (approximately 16,500, or 3 images per specimen);
with photographs of living organisms (approximately 2500) and with
digitized, descriptive text (approximately 2500 pages). This group of
fungi is characterized by an ephemeral spore-bearing structure that
changes drastically upon drying. Thus photographs and descriptions of
the living organism must supplement dried specimens to permit
evaluation of key taxonomic features.
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Project
Coordinator: Tomi Trilar
Amount: $30,000
Managing Institution: Slovenian Museum of Natural
History
Ljubljana, Slovenia
Participating Institutions: Herbarium Ljubljana of Det. Of Biology,
Biotechnical Facility, University of Ljubljana and Centre for
Cartography of Fauna and Flora, Miklavz na Dravskem polju )CKFF)
Title: Digitisation of Slovenian Natural History Collections
Abstract: A project of digitisation in Slovenian Natural History
Collections aims to fasten the already running process of getting the
specimen based biodiversity information publicly available. During the
course of the project 150.000 herbarium sheets and 50.000 specimens of
fleas, butterflies and true bugs geographically covering mostly
Slovenia and the data deficient Balkan peninsula will be digitalised
and geocoded, the information being disseminated directly via local
Internet interface and via common standard (Darwin core) to GBIF
network. Two GBIF Data nodes (SMNH and Herbarium LJU) will start
operating.
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Project
Coordinator: Jesús Ugalde
Amount: $34000
Managing Institution: Instituto Nacional de
Biodiversidad (INBio)
Santo Domingo, Heredia, Costa Rica
Participating Institutions: National Museum of Costa
Rica (MNCR)
Title: Towards the establishment of a model national level biodiversity
information network
Abstract: The National Biodiversity Institute of Costa Rica (INBio) and
the National Museum of Costa Rica (MNCR) will work collaboratively in
order to establish a model national level biodiversity information
network. The aim of this project, built upon on the experience that
INBio already has in developing such type of biodiversity information
systems, is to digitalize and make web-available via CRBIF (Costa
Rica’s GBIF node, which already contains almost 3 million specimen
records available), 260,000 additional specimens, 80.000 of Lepidoptera
from INBio and 180.000 specimen of Plants from the Herbarium of the
MNCR. This information will be very useful in biodiversity conservation
decision making processes.
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Project
Coordinator: Lou van Guelpen
Amount: $26299
Managing Institution: Huntsman Marine Science Centre
St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada
Title: Quality Assessment and Quality Control of the Atlantic Reference
Centre Museum Database for On-Line Availability
Abstract: The Atlantic Reference Centre (ARC) is the principal research
museum of marine organisms in Atlantic Canada. Through recent
internships and small grants the ARC has completed digitization of
catalogued collections (126,403 records). However, the museum
database has a clear need for QA/QC. The need is becoming urgent
with collaborative projects to make these data available via the
Internet. This application proposes to implement QA/QC on the
museum database, as part of an overall project to complete this
database and place it on-line. The overall project includes
several partners, and once QA/QC is completed on the ARC database, it
will be used in several planned or desired Internet-based biodiversity
network partnerships.
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Project
Coordinator: Ken Walker
Amount: $50000
Managing Institution: Museum Victoria
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Participating Institutions: Australian Museum, Sydney, New South Wales;
CSIRO Marine Laboratories, Hobart, Tasmania; CSIRO Australian National
Wildlife Collection, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory; Museum
Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria; Museum & Art Gallery of the Northern
Territory, Darwin, Northern Territory; Queensland Museum, Brisbane,
Queensland; Queen Victoria Museum, Launceston, Tasmania; South
Australian Museum, Adelaide, South Australia; Tasmanian Museum and Art
Gallery, Hobart, Tasmania; Western Australian Museum, Perth Western
Australia
Title: Digitization of Vertebrate and Mollusca Primary Types held in
Australian Institutions
Abstract: The Council of Heads of Australian Faunal Collections (CHAFC)
has received GBIF DIGIT funds to inventory the Vertebrate and Mollusca
primary type specimens, almost 14,000 species, held collectively in
Australian faunal collections.
The DIGIT project will database and image capture these primary types
specimens. Image capture will involve several views of each
primary type specimen (as directed by specialist curators) as well as
the original type label itself.
The captured data and images will be made freely available through two
methods. JPEG images will be available on OZCAM (On-Line
Zoological Collections of Australian Museums). This new web site
provides search query access, through a single portal, to all
Australian faunal collections across a distributed database network. In
addition, a full set of original TIFF images, of each major taxon, will
be available on CD.
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Please note that this story expired on 2003/10/18
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