FRESHWATER METADATA JOURNAL

Title

Metadata description of the AMAZON FISH database

Author(s)

Céline Jézéquel, Pablo A. Tedesco, Javier A. Maldonado-Ocampo, Saúl Prada-Pedreros, Hernán Ortega, Max Hildalgo, Koen Martens, Aaike De Wever, Jansen Zuanon, Gislene Torrente-Vilara, Leandro M. Sousa, Tommaso Guiarrizzo, Jonathan Valdiviezo, Jaime Sarmiento, Mabel Maldonado, Fernando M. Carvajal-Vallejos, Takayuki Yunoki, Carlos Donascimiento, Edwin Agudelo, José Iván Mojica, Raúl Ríos Herrera, Francisco Villa & Thierry Oberdorff

Abstract

The title "AMAZON FISH database" is a working title for the Amazonian Freshwater Fish Biodiversity database that was constructed in the framework of the AMAZON FISH (ERANetLAC/DCC-0210) project. In order to construct the AMAZON FISH database, which aims to become a high quality freshwater fish biodiversity database covering the entire Amazon drainage basin, data from a wide range of sources were compiled in a central database. The content of this database can be considered as a collection of curated datasets or dataset exports (as the database only covers the Amazon basin, while source datasets may cover larger areas). These datasets are of different nature and include: A. Information extracted from the literature (published articles, books, gray literature). B. Data available from museums/collections and universities. C. Data held or compiled by project partners (e.g. at country level). Some of these have previously been published through the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) network, while others will be released in the framework of AMAZON FISH. D. Data extracted from online databases such as GBIF, FishNet, SpeciesLink and IABIN. E. New data obtained during (a) sampling campaign(s) in the framework of the project. At this stage (December 2018), the database already provides a comprehensive overview of the fish diversity and distribution in the Amazon basin, with over 305.000 occurrence records from 123 sources (mostly covering B, C & D). After the project formally ends, it will still be updated by including new data from the project partners (C), from literature references (A) and potentially by including data from new sampling campaigns (E) to areas for which we identified a gap in the available data. Through the integration of these different data sources, the AMAZON FISH database constitutes a unique resource on the Amazon basin, which concentrates the highest freshwater biodiversity on earth. By compiling the knowledge on the spatial distribution of freshwater fishes and addressing the taxonomic and sampling gaps, this database should enable comprehensive analysis and modeling. As such it will answer the essential need for understanding this unique ecosystem that has produced such high freshwater fish diversity.

Keywords

fish, database, Amazon basin, Amazon river, database description

How to cite this article

Jézéquel, C., Tedesco, P. A., Maldonado-Ocampo, J. A., Prada-Pedreros, S., Ortega, H., Hildalgo, M., Martens, K., De Wever, A., Zuanon, J., Torrente-Vilara, G., Sousa, L. M., Guiarrizzo, T., Valdiviezo, J., Sarmiento, J., Maldonado, M., Carvajal-Vallejos, F. M., Yunoki, T., Donascimiento, C., Agudelo, E., Mojica, J. I., Herrera, R. R., Villa, F. & Oberdorff, T., 2019. Metadata description of the AMAZON FISH database. Freshwater Metadata Journal 43: 1-9. https://doi.org/10.15504/fmj.2019.43