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The New Zealand Biodiversity Recording Network is a web-based system to record and process contributed natural history observations (birds, plants, butterflies, mushrooms, reptiles, frogs and mammals). Anyone can register on the site and report their own observations. Once entered on the website these records can be retrieved as Excel spreadsheets or as Google Maps.
NZBRN is seeking currently seeking additional TIFBIS funding to streamline the layout and functioning of the website so that it is made more intuitive within the context of modern internet technology. NZBRN maps species’ distributions; provides a repository for community restoration groups to enter ecological monitoring data; can engage students, schools and lay people in observing, recording and becoming aware of their biodiversity; and for assessing biosecurity risks.
Special features of the NZBRN website include instant updating of maps, ability to upload large amounts of data through an Excel spreadsheet template and download records onto your own spreadsheet for further processing and reporting, recording absences, hiding sensitive records and indicating accuracy of records. Currently, the NZBRN is the single largest, publicly accessible, live repository of natural history data in the country (over a quarter million plant records, 70 000 bird and 50 000 fungal records, and a few thousand herpetofauna, mammal and invertebrate records).
The NZ Biodiversity Recording System is being developed and administered by a team at Landcare Research and Lincoln University together with an informal stakeholder steering group from across New Zealand. The project is funded by TFBIS and is currently hosted at Landcare Research although will remain independent. Data will support New Zealand's GBIF node.
Screenshots from a demonstration session run by Colin Meurk and Mark Fugelstad, on 19 June 2009 are available here: NZBRN Screenshots. Audio from the session is available here: Dataversity Tour of NZBRN.
An audiovisual presentation by Margaret Anderson from Landcare Research, on NZBRN, is available to view as part of the 2010 National Workshop resources.