Biodi e si y In o ma ion Science and S anda ds 9: e178687
doi: 10.3897/biss.9.178687
Con e ence Abs ac
Mobilising Legacy Geo e e encing E o s
Ashleigh Whi ake , Jack Plumme , Nicky Nicolson
‡ Royal Bo anic Ga dens, Kew, London, Uni ed Kingdom
Co esponding au ho : Ashleigh Whi ake (a.whi ake @kew.o g), Jack Plumme (j.plumme @kew.o g), Nicky
Nicolson ([email protected] g)
Recei ed: 19 No 2025 | Published: 20 No 2025
Ci a ion: Whi ake A, Plumme J, Nicolson N (2025) Mobilising Legacy Geo e e encing E o s. Biodi e si y
In o ma ion Science and S anda ds 9: e178687. h ps://doi.o g/10.3897/biss.9.178687
Abs ac
As we p og ess owa ds a globally accessible na u al his o y collec ion, he ways in
which we digi ally cu a e, sha e and use ou da a will ine i ably change. Digi al specimen
eco ds enable access by in-coun y expe s, inc ease he oppo uni y o specimen
enhancemen by he scien i ic communi y, and imp o e he b ead h o esea ch o which
he specimens con ibu e.
Digi isa ion wo k lows cap u e an image o en wi h minimal ansc ip ion; hey do no
include he u he enhancemen o specimen eco ds, such as geo e e encing - he
addi ion o coo dina es o ex based locali y in o ma ion. Typically used o geo e e ence
he ba ium specimens, he poin adius me hod assigns a coo dina e and a measu emen
o maximum unce ain y (Wieczo ek and Chapman 2020). Some he ba ium specimens
ha lack coo dina es s ill canno be geo e e enced using his me hod due o poo label
da a o he una ailabili y o con ex ual in o ma ion.
Da a de i ed om he ba ium specimens o m he basis o species dis ibu ion modelling,
axonomic esea ch and IUCN ex inc ion isk assessmen s. I a specimen eco d does no
ha e coo dina es, hen i is o en disca ded ea ly in he da a mining p ocess, highligh ing
he impo ance o da a enhancemen h ough geo e e encing, which con i ms he species
occu ence in space and ime.
The Kunming-Mon eal Global Biodi e si y F amewo k a ge s help o guide he mos
impo an applica ions o collec ion da a o biodi e si y conse a ion; Ta ge 4, o
example, aims o hal species ex inc ion and p o ec gene ic di e si y (Con en ion on
‡ ‡ ‡
© Whi ake A e al. This is an open access a icle dis ibu ed unde he e ms o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion License (CC
BY 4.0), which pe mi s un es ic ed use, dis ibu ion, and ep oduc ion in any medium, p o ided he o iginal au ho and sou ce
a e c edi ed.
Biological Di e si y 2023). Ex inc ion isk assessmen s o plan species a e unde pinned
by dis ibu ion maps de i ed om p ese ed specimens and obse a ion eco ds wi h
coo dina e in o ma ion ei he eco ded a he ime o collec ion o h ough subsequen
geo e e encing o he specimen. Howe e , o e hal o all he ba ium specimens on
Global Biodi e si y In o ma ion Facili y (GBIF) do no ha e coo dina es and so obus
ex inc ion isk assessmen s o en equi e a geo e e encing s ep be o e applying he
IUCN’s c i e ia. O he da a ypes con ibu ing o ex inc ion isk assessmen , such as
popula ion size and end a e o en lacking and, whe e a ailable, subjec i e and
es ic ed o an expe ’s i s hand knowledge o he species, making he da a un aceable
o he wide communi y (Nic Lughadha e al. 2019, Willis e al. 2003).
As highligh ed in Bloom e al. (2018), he es ima ed dis ibu ion o a species di e s
depending on he o igin o he coo dina e da a. Fo example, non-geo e e enced eco ds
end o in la e he es ima ed dis ibu ion o a species. Wo king wi h collabo a o s wi h
egional geog aphical expe ise, and using da ase s ollowing s anda dised p o ocols,
will mo e likely esul in accu a e and p ecise geo e e enced eco ds.
As he ba ium specimen labels can con ain quali a i e con ex on collec ion locali ies, he
p ocess o geo e e encing is subjec i e and so an indica o o con idence and he
geo e e ence 's me hod is impo an o end use us and usabili y o he eco d. As mo e
he ba ium specimens a e digi ised, he e is a g owing need o p oduce geo e e enced
locali y da a a scale.. Al hough he e a e obus ools ha can be used o supplemen
manual geo e e encing, geo e e encing o all specimens in na u al his o y collec ions
cu en ly lacking coo dina es is no easible o esou ce, as geo e e encing is ime and
esou ce hea y.
The Royal Bo anic Ga dens, Kew now con ibu es 5.8 million he ba ium specimen
eco ds o GBIF, many o which will ha e be ween h ee and six duplica e specimens
loca ed in he ba ia a ound he wo ld. Enhancing hese eco ds wi h exis ing
geo e e encing e o s accumula ed h ough he comple ion o se e al housand
ex inc ion isk assessmen s will educe duplica ed e o and unco e geo e e enced
locali ies ha would o he wise go undocumen ed. This da ase will also help in
es ablishing p o ocols o apply when geo e e encing plan collec ions in he u u e,
pa icula ly in da a-poo opical egions.
Keywo ds
he ba ium specimens, digi isa ion, ed lis assessmen s
P esen ing au ho
Ashleigh Whi ake
2Whi ake A e al
P esen ed a
Li ing Da a 2025
Con lic s o in e es
The au ho s ha e decla ed ha no compe ing in e es s exis .
Re e ences
• Bloom TS, Flowe A, DeChaine E (2018) Why geo e e encing ma e s: In oducing a
p ac ical p o ocol o p epa e species occu ence eco ds o spa ial analysis. Ecology
and E olu ion 8 (1): 765‑777. h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/ece3.3516
• Con en ion on Biological Di e si y (2023) Kunming-Mon eal Global Biodi e si y
F amewo k. h ps://www.cbd.in /gb . Accessed on: 2025-11-14.
• Nic Lughadha E, Walke BE, Can ei o C, Chadbu n H, Da is AP, Ha g ea es S, Lucas
EJ, Schui eman A, Williams E, Bachman SP, Baines D, Ba ke A, Budden AP, Ca e e o
J, Cla kson JJ, Robe s A, Ri e s MC (2019) The use and misuse o he ba ium
specimens in e alua ing plan ex inc ion isks. Philosophical T ansac ions o he Royal
Socie y B: Biological Sciences 374 (1763). h ps://doi.o g/10.1098/ s b.2017.0402
• Wieczo ek J, Chapman A (2020) Geo e e encing Bes P ac ices. GBIF Sec e a ia .
h ps://doi.o g/10.15468/doc-gg7h-s853
• Willis F, Moa J, Pa on A (2003) De ining a ole o he ba ium da a in Red Lis
assessmen s: a case s udy o Plec an hus om eas e n and sou he n opical A ica.
Biodi e si y & Conse a ion 12 (7): 1537‑1552. h ps://doi.o g/10.1023/a:1023679329093
Mobilising Legacy Geo e e encing Effo s 3
