speciesLink: rich data and novel tools for digital assessments of biodiversity

Canhos, Dora Ann Lange; Almeida, Eduardo A. B.; Assad, Ana Lucia; Bustamante, Mercedes Maria da Cunha; Canhos, Vanderlei Perez; Chapman, Arthur D.; Giovanni, Renato De; Imperatriz-Fonseca, Vera Lúcia; Lohmann, Lúcia G.; Maia, Leonor Costa; Miller, Joseph T.; Nelson, Gil; Peterson, A. Townsend; Pirani, José Rubens; Souza, Sidnei de; Stehmann, João Renato; Thiers, Barbara M.

doi:10.1590/1676-0611-bn-2022-1394

Cited by 6 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…In recent years, major herbaria holding large Neotropical collections including the Netherland’s Naturalis Biodiversity Center, the National Museum of natural History in Paris, the United States National Herbarium, New York Botanical Garden, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, among others have undertaken the digitization of all of their collections. Furthermore, national herbaria in Latin American countries have initiated massive digitization projects, such as ReFlora virtual herbarium and speciesLink in Brazil (Canhos et al ., 2022), open data in Mexico (UNAM, 2019) and Bio virtual in Colombia (ICN, 2004). Improved access to digital images from herbarium specimens, coupled with novel analytical approaches based on machine learning and artificial intelligence, have the potential to greatly facilitate taxonomic work (Funk, 2018; Younis et al ., 2019), leading to more efficient identification and description of new species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trials and tribulations of Neotropical plant taxonomy: pace of tree species description

Luján,

Lemos,

Lucas

et al. 2023

Preprint

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One of the main aspects of taxonomic research is the description of new species. Identifying how to describe new species more efficiently is key to completing the inventory of the Neotropical flora in an era of massive biodiversity loss. Here we calculate the interval between first specimen collection and new species publication for a group of 2126 Neotropical trees, and discuss the historical context surrounding specimen collection and new species publication events. Our results reveal that on average, it takes almost 16 years from specimen collection to publication of a new Neotropical tree species, which is considerably shorter than previous estimates for other tropical groups. The central Andes is the region that had the longest average time lags, while the Choco had the shortest. Peru had the longest average time lags by country, while Haiti had the shortest. The average time lags increased until the early 1900s, when a decrease was observed, with the shortest lags between 1941 to 1960. We found that the majority of the species described more rapidly are from plants collected and described by the same researcher. We demonstrate how political instability and conflict can delay or impede the completion of research initiatives in the region. We argue that enhancing international collaboration and training opportunities in Latin American countries, as well as ensuring safe plant collection campaigns, are critical to complete the inventory of the Neotropical flora.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trials and tribulations of Neotropical plant taxonomy: pace of tree species description

Luján,

Lemos,

Lucas

et al. 2023

Preprint

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“…Taxonomic Studies and Mapping-This study is based on herbarium specimens housed at ALCB, CEPEC, CAS, HUEFS, HUEM, K, NY, RB, SPF, UEC, and UPCB (acronyms according to Thiers 2023). Online images of collections, including type specimens, were examined using JSTOR (https://plants.jstor.org/) and SpeciesLink (https://specieslink.net/; Canhos et al 2022). The distribution map was generated using QGIS 3.4.6 (QGIS Development Team 2023) by incorporating coordinates from specimen labels.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Measurements were taken using the Software ImageJ (Schneider et al 2012), based on images of specimens downloaded from SpeciesLink (https://specieslink. net/; Canhos et al 2022), and from photos of floral structures taken using a stereoscope with an attached digital camera. Boxplots of morphological measurements and pairwise t tests between each species pair were conducted in R. A list of specimens examined is provided in Appendix 1.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To test the distinctiveness of these species with respect to the mentioned characters, we randomly selected and measured leaf blades (n = 20 for each species), petioles (n = 20), calyx lobes (n = 5), anther thecae (n = 10), and connective width at the base (n = 6). Measurements were taken using the Software ImageJ (Schneider et al 2012), based on images of specimens downloaded from SpeciesLink (https://specieslink.net/; Canhos et al 2022), and from photos of floral structures taken using a stereoscope with an attached digital camera. Boxplots of morphological measurements and pairwise t tests between each species pair were conducted in R. A list of specimens examined is provided in Appendix 1.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Phylogenetic Analysis of Marcetia (Melastomataceae, Marcetieae) and Three New Sprawling Species from Bahia, Brazil

Pacifico,

Almeda,

Kriebel

2023

Systematic Botany

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Abstract— Three new species of the Neotropical genus Marcetia are described and illustrated: Marcetia barbadensis, Marcetia minima, and Marcetia serratifolia. The three species are known from small isolated populations in mountains of the Chapada Diamantina, Bahia, Brazil. The recognition of Marcetia barbadensis and Marcetia serratifolia is confirmed with an updated molecular phylogeny of the tribe Marcetieae (based on ETS, ITS, accD-psaI, atpF-atpH, trnS-trnG, psbK-psbL, ndhF and rbcL), and by morphological and morphometric studies. In turn, the recognition of Marcetia minima, a new species known only from the type gathering collected about 30 yr ago, is based on analyses of leaf and anther connective shape, as well as linear measurements of vegetative and reproductive structures. Based on the new phylogenetic hypothesis for Marcetieae, we reconstructed the evolution of habit and petal color in the tribe, and showed that prostrate plants and white flowers evolved repeatedly from ancestors with an erect habit and pink to magenta petals. We also provide notes on the intergeneric relationships and phylogeny of Marcetia and evaluate the generic placement of the recently described Acisanthera saxatilis.

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“…We compiled occurrence records of Caatinga flowering plants based on herbarium records obtained after the year 1970 and available at four online databases: (i) the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF, 2022), (ii) SpeciesLink (Canhos et al, 2022), (iii) Brazilian Biodiversity Information Facility Repository (SiBBr, 2022) and (iv) Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio, 2022). For GBIF, SpeciesLink and SiBBR databases, we filtered available records based on preserved specimens only.…”

Section: Species Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

Pervasive impacts of climate change on the woodiness and ecological generalism of dry forest plant assemblages

et al. 2023

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1. Climate emergency is a significant threat to biodiversity in the 21st century, but species will not be equally affected. In summing up the responses of different species at the local scale, we can assess changes in the species quantity and composition of biotic assemblages. 2. We used more than 420K curated occurrence records of 3060 plant species to model current and future patterns of plant species distribution in one of the world's largest tropical dry forests-the Caatinga. While allowing different model extrapolation scenarios, we estimated potential changes in the species richness and composition of dryland plant assemblages in response to projected climate change, and assessed how the ecological generalism and woodiness of plant assemblages can be impacted by the climate crisis. 3. More than 99% of plant assemblages were projected to lose species by 2060, with biotic homogenisation-the decrease in spatial beta diversity-forecasted in 40% of the Caatinga. The replacement of narrow-range woody species by wide-range non-woody ones should impact at least 90% of Caatinga plant assemblages. The exacerbated species loss in the dryland plant assemblages was connected to the heterogenisation and homogenisation of biotic assemblages. Still, the magnitude of climate change impacts on ecological generalism and woodiness patterns of dryland plant assemblages differ according to the direction of the biotic change process. 4. Synthesis. The future increase in aridity will change the patterns of woodiness and ecological generalism of tropical dry forest plant assemblages by decreasing vegetation diversity and complexity. The projected biotic changes in dryland plant assemblages indicate the erosion of ecosystem services linked to biomass productivity and carbon storage. We highlight the importance of long-term conservation planning for maintaining tropical dry forests.

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speciesLink: rich data and novel tools for digital assessments of biodiversity

Cited by 6 publications

References 72 publications

Trials and tribulations of Neotropical plant taxonomy: pace of tree species description

Trials and tribulations of Neotropical plant taxonomy: pace of tree species description

A Phylogenetic Analysis of Marcetia (Melastomataceae, Marcetieae) and Three New Sprawling Species from Bahia, Brazil

Pervasive impacts of climate change on the woodiness and ecological generalism of dry forest plant assemblages

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