iSpot updates

News from The Open University

A range of new features has been added to iSpot recently, with more on the way. The first of these is the ability to display and record ecological interactions. If you look at an observation on iSpot that has been identified to species level, any interacting species will be displayed at the bottom of the page. And if you see a butterfly feeding at a flower, or a predator catching its prey, try to get photos of both halves of the interaction and then you can link them on iSpot, adding to the list of recorded interactions. Interactions for some familiar plants are also presented on a separate page showing ecological webs.

The ecological interactions feature has been developed in partnership with the British Ecological Society (for their centenary celebrations) and the Biological Records Centre, whose database of insects and foodplants provides much of the underlying data that is displayed on iSpot.
Some of the ecological interactions presented on iSpot, using data from the Biological Records Centre
iSpot uses a species dictionary supplied by the UK Species Inventory at the Natural History Museum. We recently updated the iSpot dictionary to the latest version of the UKSI, and this has allowed us not only to update the names used on iSpot but also to take advantage of the taxonomic hierarchy that has been developed within UKSI. This allows browsing up and down the taxonomic ‘tree of life’, enabling you to go from any species observation on iSpot to see others in the same genus or family etc., and making it much easier for experts to check observations for their particular taxon group.

Thanks to the UKSI, you can now browse up and down the taxonomic tree on iSpot

If you’re experienced in identifying wildlife and want to help others learn about species identification, iSpot would love to hear from you – our less experienced wildlife-watchers are always grateful for any help that you can provide, whether you just want to help out occasionally or play a more active role. Please contact Martin Harvey for further details.

Written by Martin Harvey, on behalf of The Open University

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