EcoBase

Storing and Querying Taxonomic and Ecological Data

Auckland Regional Council has commissioned the development of EcoBase is a powerful tool that provides quality ecological data management functionality.

This application favours a wide range of public and private organisations, especially those who have large taxonomic and ecological datasets in various formats, with limited consistency. Developed by iQuest of Hamilton, this SQL database is a secure repository for our marine and freshwater ecological data, designed with ISO accreditation in mind.

EcoBase improves workflow, and the quality, accessibility, interpretation and manipulation of data with a range of fantastic features. Its ongoing development is assured, sculpted by the users.

Key Features of EcoBase

Taxonomic data

• displayed on a taxonomic tree, species are laid out as if by Linnaeus himself
• storage and querying of taxonomic data for organisms identified to different classification levels

Flexibility

• hold and edit data in a ‘workfile’ until auditing is complete, then send to the archive (home of quality data)
• customise your parameter (variable and sub-variable) lists and your import templates
• group sites by program, habitat type, etc
• store data from a range of different sampling regimes
• control access privileges to various areas, or tasks

Querying and reporting

• elegant querying of data in workfiles or the archive
• query sites, groups of sites, taxa, specific size ranges, date ranges, quality codes, etc
• export your queries, export your charts
• reports to the web, with interactive user querying

Reference info is all inclusive

• store your spatial info, sample methodology, raw data, media, contact info, and more
• log your data editing and track your users

Possibilities

• applicable to a wide range of taxonomic and ecological data, eg aquatic, terrestrial, community monitoring, Biosecurity, Biodiversity etc
• a national 'hub': centralised taxa and variables lists, enabling expedient comparison of inter-organisational data

Contact

Mike McMurtry, Marcus Cameron or Phil White (Manager), Environmental Services, Auckland Regional Council.