Ocean Biodiversity Information System

Ocean Biodiversity Information System
Name	Ocean Biodiversity Information System
Formation	1998
Founder	Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
Type	Intergovernmental database
Location	Paris
Area served	Global oceans
Focus	Marine biodiversity, species occurrence, taxonomy
Parent organization	United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

Ocean Biodiversity Information System is an international marine biodiversity data portal developed to aggregate species occurrence records, taxonomic information, and distributional datasets from coastal to deep-sea environments. The system connects national institutes, research programs, and conservation bodies to support assessments by organizations such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature, Convention on Biological Diversity, and Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. It serves researchers at institutions like the Smithsonian Institution, Natural History Museum, London, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography and supports initiatives linked to United Nations agendas and regional commissions.

Overview

OBIS functions as a distributed network linking datasets from repositories including the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, World Register of Marine Species, and regional data centers such as the European Marine Observation and Data Network and the Asia-Pacific Center for Marine Biodiversity. Stakeholders include research vessels operated by Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, regional programs like the Census of Marine Life, and monitoring efforts by agencies including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. The platform interoperates with standards produced by bodies such as the International Organization for Standardization, Global Ocean Observing System, and Data Quality Control Board to ensure compatibility with repositories like the Ocean Biogeographic Information System and museum networks such as the American Museum of Natural History and Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle.

History and development

Origins trace to collaborations among the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, International Council for Science, and institutions that participated in the Census of Marine Life and projects like Tagging of Pacific Predators. Early contributors included museums such as the Natural History Museum, Vienna, university groups at University of Oxford, University of Tokyo, and governmental agencies like Geological Survey of Japan. Funding and strategic support came from entities such as the European Commission, National Science Foundation, and philanthropic organizations like the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, with technical partnerships involving the British Antarctic Survey and Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.

Data and taxonomy

Taxonomic backbone integration relies on registries including the World Register of Marine Species, Catalogue of Life, and name authorities like the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. Data contributors span museums—Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales—and observatories such as Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute and the Alfred Wegener Institute. Occurrence records derive from expeditions like the Challenger Expedition legacy, fisheries surveys by Food and Agriculture Organization, and contemporary programs such as Global Ocean Ship-based Hydrographic Investigations Program. Metadata aligns with vocabularies from Dublin Core, and harmonization uses schemas influenced by the Biodiversity Information Standards (TDWG) community.

Technology and infrastructure

The platform's technical stack employs services interoperable with infrastructures like the European Grid Infrastructure, cloud providers used by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, and catalog systems similar to GBIF. Software components reference tools developed at institutions such as PANGAEA, OBIS-ENVIRON, and university computing centers at University of California, San Diego and University of British Columbia. Networked access mirrors architectures used by World Data Center networks and aligns with protocols promoted by the Group on Earth Observations. Data quality pipelines incorporate validation methods referenced in workflows at National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research and algorithms from projects at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Applications and uses

Researchers at Plymouth Marine Laboratory, University of Cape Town, and Universidad de Concepción use the resource for species distribution modeling informing assessments by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change scenarios and management plans under instruments such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Conservation NGOs including World Wide Fund for Nature, The Nature Conservancy, and BirdLife International integrate OBIS data for marine protected area planning alongside regional bodies like the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources and North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission. Fisheries scientists at ICES and South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation utilize occurrence and effort data for stock assessments and ecosystem-based management frameworks advocated by the Food and Agriculture Organization.

Governance and partnerships

Governance involves coordination among intergovernmental entities such as the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, collaborative partners including the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and academic nodes at University of Amsterdam, University of Washington, and policy stakeholders like the European Commission Directorate-General for Environment. Partnerships extend to regional data centers such as the Australian Ocean Data Network, African Marine Atlas, and research consortia including the Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative and the Census of Marine Life legacy organizations. Advisory roles engage experts affiliated with universities like Princeton University, University of Groningen, and institutions such as The Ocean Cleanup and International Union for Conservation of Nature specialist groups.

Challenges and future directions

Ongoing challenges include integrating heterogeneous datasets from sources such as museum collections at the Natural History Museum, London and citizen science platforms like eBird adapted for marine use, reconciling taxonomic discrepancies recognized by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature, and scaling infrastructure in partnership with cloud providers used by European Space Agency and NASA. Future priorities emphasize improved interoperability with initiatives like the Global Ocean Observing System, enhanced support for data from deep-sea missions like those by NOAA Okeanos Explorer and Schmitt Oceanographic Institution, and strengthened links with policy frameworks under the Convention on Biological Diversity post-2020 targets and the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.

Category:Marine biology databases