Help Wanted! 像我這般的普羅大眾，是否也可以為這個調查生物多項性的計畫盡棉薄之力呢？
What is good for the Earth is good for Taiwan. 從報導看起來，這是一個企圖心很高的計畫，應該是以全球為範疇的。在報導中看不出是否業餘的自然愛好者可以為此計畫出點力；在這幾個網站也還不見任何關於此計畫的說明。
Natural History Museum
Consortium for the Barcode of Life
e-biosphere 09 - International Conference on Biodiversity Informatics
Encyclopedia of Life
在中華鳥會的網站上也有一個集合眾人之力而做成的資料庫。雖然自己只是在入門階段，我也報告了自己的觀察記錄。積少成多，這些記錄對於研究鳥類生態、遷徙、族群的消長及生物多樣性、外來種鳥類的擴散與對本土種生物的影響…等等應有很大的幫助。
雖說資料的信度會因為報告者而有所差異，但參予者也會因經驗與知識的累積而使其報告更臻確實、完整。除了充實知識之外，我也認真地思考著如何在戶外活動中做這些記錄，並使其有一定的水準，也不致影響與我同行的夥伴們。──我應該可以做更多！
Page last updated at 14:12 GMT, Monday, 1 June 2009 15:12 UK
Help wanted to write book of life
The project aims to catalogue local species of flora and fauna
小長喙天蛾 Macroglossum insipida Butler,1875(攝於烏來福山)日行性天蛾常會在花叢間採花蜜，以高速振動翅膀停留空中，並以長長的曲管式口器深入花中吸食花蜜。
A virtual book of all life on Earth is being created by UK and US scientists.
The online reference work will create a detailed world map of flora and fauna and track changes in biodiversity.
The database, dubbed a "macroscopic observatory', will be populated with data about local species gathered by members of the public.
Early elements of the giant database, such as automatic species identification systems, are already under construction.
Field guide
Over time the database will log shifts in species and other data such as changes in the density of forests and when plants first flower.
The backers of the idea hope that the vast, virtual book of life will eventually be comparable to the global system used to watch for and record earthquakes.
The ongoing project will constantly gather data so it can plot information about the range and abundance of plants and animals as worldwide temperature and rainfall patterns shift in response to climate change.
Details held on the database will include everything from gross anatomical details down to individual genes.
"We are creating a virtual observatory for world biodiversity, where environmental observations, specimen data, experimental results, and sophisticated modelling can be done across all levels of biodiversity - from genes to ecosystems," said James Edwards, executive director of the Encyclopedia of Life, in a statement.
The Encyclopedia, based at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC, and the London's Natural History Museum are the key backers of the project. The push to create the observatory was unveiled at the e-Biosphere 09 conference held from 1-3 June in London.
As well as logging long-term changes brought about by climate change, the creators of the online observatory hope it will bring more tangible benefits.
It could give early warnings about invasive species or, for example, give insights into the timing, altitude and route of bird migrations in ways that could reduce bird strike numbers on aircraft.
The observatory would also serve as a hi-tech field guide for anyone who wanted to identify animals, insects, trees or flowers they found while on holiday or near their home.
Within 10 years, expect its backers, all aspects of the database will be available. Some parts of the system, such as images of species, maps of the seas and gene sequences to help with DNA barcoding, are already in use.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8077262.stm
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