Information in the SERPIN database comes from a variety of sources including other web sites, online bibliographic databases, printed literature, and information submitted directly by institutions and specialists from the region.

When SERPIN responds to your search queries, it groups information into four categories, represented by tabs on the search response screens:

• species "profile" data: taxonomic and nomenclatural information, common names, and endangerment rankings
• literature:complete literature citations and abstracts (if available online)
• collections: type and location of collection (e.g., display plants, research material, seed banks) including contact information
• contacts: information about people and institutions working with southeastern rare plants (e.g., researchers, environmental educators, land managers).

The Search SERPIN utility allows you to search the database according to any of these data categories.

The SERPIN database includes information for all federal- and state-listed species in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and north and central Florida. Ten South Florida Counties are excluded from the database: Charlotte, Glades, Martin, Lee, Hendry, Palm Beach, Collier, Broward, Monroe, and Dade.

Conservation status rankings reported for each taxon include global, federal, and state status. The source of the Global Heritage Status rankings is NatureServe Explorer. Federal rankings based on the United States Endangered Species Act are obtained from the U. S. Fish and Wildlife's web site. State rankings are obtained from the following web sites:

The classification systems used to indicate conservation status vary from one state to another. The search-by-status function within the Search SERPIN utility allows you to tailor searches on a state-by-state basis.

Scientific nomenclature follows the U.S. government's online Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS), and SERPIN links dynamically to the ITIS site.

Common names for each species include those obtained from the online state lists (see above) and those listed in ITIS. The first letter in each word of a common name is capitalized. Names such as "Ladyslipper", "Pitcherplant", and "Quillwort" are written as one word rather than hyphenated or split into two words.

To make SERPIN more accessible to the general public, it uses a highly simplified classification system to summarize habitat information for species. We recognize that this system is artificial and that it fails to adequately describe the ecological diversity found in the southeastern United States. However, it does provide a basic idea of where a species occurs (e.g., in a forest vs. a grassland) and it should enable you to carry out searches based on a general knowledge of plant habitats. It also emphasizes habitats that feature many rare species such as sandhills, rock outcrops, and bogs. For an overview of SERPIN's habitat classification system, click here. The Search SERPIN utility allows users to search for species within the database based on habitat type.

Due to limited resources, and the difficulty of keeping information up-to-date, we do not include complete distribution data for each species in the SERPIN database. SERPIN indicates only that a species is listed as threatened or endangered in a particular state. For information concerning the overall geographic distribution of a species, and for detailed habitat data based on the International Classification of Ecological Communities (developed by the Natural Heritage Network in conjunction with NatureServe and The Nature Conservancy), use the NatureServe Explorer web site. The Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants provides excellent distribution maps for species in Florida.

During the first phase of SERPIN's development, we are searching the primary literature for references to the state-listed plant species in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and north and central Florida. Most of these citations will be retrieved from online indexes to the scientific literature of biology, which cover the years from around 1970 through the present. We will also search the online indexes to the primary literature of popular publications, the offline indexes that predate online files, and the secondary literature published in botanical books and floras that include the southeastern U.S.

During the second phase of the project, we will shift to collecting and digitizing less accessible gray literature. A great deal of unpublished information in the form of reports, newsletters, and notes resides in the files and computers of institutions working with rare plants. This includes botanical gardens, herbaria, nature centers, academic institutions, and conservation and land management organizations. SERPIN will provide full-text electronic access to documents that are publicly available or to those that institutions are willing to share. Print documents will be scanned and converted to electronic files.

The plant profile information (nomenclature, common names, status, etc.) and bibliographic data are added to the database by SERPIN project staff. In contrast, plant collections data and information concerning specialists working with rare plants are submitted electronically by visitors to the web site. Data is submitted using online forms which are submitted to the SERPIN webmaster for screening. They are then added to the permanent database. These data entry utilities are accessed from the SERPIN homepage (Share your expertise and Add your collection links). Researchers, educators, library, museum, and conservation professionals working with rare plants in the southeastern United States are encouraged to contribute information to the SERPIN database. If you have questions, please contact us at contact@serpin.org.

Information in the species profiles is updated regularly in response to additions and deletions to the state endangered plant lists. Once the initial bibliographic search is completed, additional searches to capture recent publications will be carried out every six months. Entry of collections and specialist contact information is an ongoing process. Individuals and institutions will be contacted annually to review and update their entries.

Literature, plant information, contacts, and collections information are entered into a Microsoft SQL Server database management system. A separate utility captures information on literature citations. SERPIN web pages use Cold Fusion 4.0. The database feeds information dynamically into these pages and displays them for the user.

The database management system was designed by Anukriti Sud of Bloom, Inc. and Mark Mongeau and Dan Artuso of PagePearls. The web architecture was designed by Bloom and PagePearls. All Cold Fusion programming was developed by PagePearls. Web site graphic design was created by Anukriti Sud (Bloom) with independent consultant Keven Ficken and graphic artist Steven Tamminga.

Questions regarding the technology behind the SERPIN site can be directed to Anukriti Sud at Bloom (anu@bloominc.org).

Sponsors and Participants

Initial funding for the project was provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the University of Georgia. The primary partners in the development of SERPIN are The State Botanical Garden of Georgia and Duke University Biological and Experimental Sciences Library. Technical expertise for development of the web site is provided by Bloom, Inc., a not-for-profit organization that provides information management and network building tools to the plant conservation community.

A primary goal of SERPIN is to strengthen ties between institutions in the Southeast that are dedicated to plant conservation. Institutions represented on the SERPIN Design Team include: The North Carolina Arboretum, The North Carolina Botanical Garden, The South Carolina Botanical Garden, Georgia Plant Conservation Alliance, Florida Natural Areas Inventory, and Bok Tower Gardens.

Dr. James Affolter, The State Botanical Garden of Georgia, University of Georgia
Dr. David Talbert, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University
Ms. Jennifer Ceska, The State Botanical Garden of Georgia, University of Georgia

Ms. Dorothy Brazis, Bok Tower Gardens
Mr. George Briggs, The North Carolina Arboretum
Mr. Ron Determann, Atlanta Botanical Garden
Ms. Carol Helton, Atlanta Botanical Garden
Mr. Gary Knight, Florida Natural Areas Inventory
Ms. Tammera Race (formerly of Bok Tower Gardens)
Dr. Lisa Wagner, South Carolina Botanical Garden
Dr. Peter White, North Carolina Botanical Garden

Team Leader: Ms. Anukriti Sud, Bloom, Inc.

Team Leader: Dr. Tom Reeves, Dept. of Instructional Technology, University of Georgia

Project Status