v Databasing Invasions: A Review in the Context of the Global Invasive Species Information Network (GISIN)

Elizabeth Sellers, Information International Associates Inc., P.O. Box 4219, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-4219., (703) 648-4385, esellers@usgs.gov.

Abstract

Due to significant and costly impacts on agriculture, economy and biodiversity caused by the accidental or intentional introduction and establishment of invasive alien species (IAS), IAS have been recognized as a significant global threat in need of urgent attention. Consequently, the international community has been urged to address the IAS issue as a national and international priority. Although some nations may have so far escaped the effects of IAS, the burgeoning status of global trade and travel guarantees that all nations will not only be threatened, but will experience the direct impact of IAS at some point in the near future.

Developed nations with established infrastructure, clearly defined biodiversity-management policies and regulations, decision-supporting data, information systems and technology have already demonstrated their capacity to detect and prevent potential invasions, combat established invasive species, and restore affected communities and ecosystems. A significant factor affecting the success of these activities is the existence, availability and accessibility of IAS data, databases and information systems. Databases represent a potentially valuable yet often inaccessible or unobtainable resource to nations that lack their own. Nations that are developing IAS databases should share their information resources in a cooperative effort towards combating the common threat posed by IAS.

However, the act of sharing information presents several problems in itself. Standards, formats, methods and protocols must be adhered to by dissimilar data products if they are to share or exchange data in an efficient and effective manner. The Internet and its associated formats and protocols for information management and exchange, represents a valuable tool for facilitating global IAS-data exchange. Recent cooperative development efforts among members of the international community and the Convention on Biological Diversity have resulted in the definition of international standards for biodiversity data exchange. Members of the international community have called for the development of a Global Invasive Species Information Network. The success and persistence of this network will depend on the support and participation of capable stakeholders, international standardization and cooperation in data exchange, and continued maintenance and development of the component information sources.

Among the nations of the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa, IAS databases, biodiversity clearinghouse mechanisms, networks and international agreements have grown in number and complexity. Regardless of whether they are called Web sites, online databases, clearinghouse mechanisms, hubs, or portals, if they provide IAS-related information through the globally accessible Internet and continue to develop network linkages with other complimentary online information systems, they lend valuable support to the continued development of a Global Invasive Species Information Network.

This report describes and synthesizes invasive species information management activities occurring around the globe during the past decade. It is prepared in the context of the Convention on Biological Diversity’s recommendation that the Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP) coordinate the development of the Global Invasive Species Information Network (GISIN). In this context, the proceedings of seven regional workshops coordinated by GISP are highlighted.

Keywords: invasive alien species, invasive species, invasives, alien species, exotic species, introduced species, non-native, nonnative, database, information system, Web, Internet, online, global invasive species information network, GISIN, IAS.

Introduction

This report was delivered to participants in the Experts Meeting on Implementation of a Global Invasive Species Information Network (GISIN), 6-8 April, 2004. The National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) of the United States Geological Survey (USGS), with support from the United States Department of State (USDOS), invited participation from countries involved in ongoing efforts under the Clearinghouse Mechanism of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the GISP, the Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG), the Global Taxonomy Initiative, the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), and others, to further develop regional information hubs around the globe and achieve invasive species information management in an interoperable manner.

The meeting was held in Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America (USA) and attended by over 80 international experts working within the invasive species information management field. The goal of the meeting was to synchronize the global efforts to manage invasive species information and define the steps that need to be taken in the implementation of a Global Invasive Species Information Network or GISIN. Prior to the meeting, an online electronic discussion and resource access forum – the GISIN Community – was created and hosted online by the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII). Topics relevant to the goals of the GISIN were covered in pre-meeting discussions, and documents, presentations, case studies and future recommendations for the development of the GISIN were submitted and examined by a broader online community of more than 150 international experts.

Research for this report was conducted online (using the Internet) and offline (using published hard-copy literature resources). The engines used to complete the Internet-based research were www.google.com© and the http://vivisimo.com® Clustering Engine. An accompanying document, DRAFT Online IAS Databases List, constitutes the research results, and includes over 150 online information systems and databases that contain IAS data, along with a brief description and a Universal Resource Locator (URL) address for each one. Each database, information system or Web site is numbered. These numbers are referenced throughout this report e.g. ‘(#1)’.

For the purposes of this report, the terms ‘invasive alien species’ and ‘IAS’ refer to “alien species whose establishment and spread threaten ecosystems, habitats or species with economic or environmental harm” (McNeely, p. 48, 2000). The term ‘database’ is used interchangeably with ‘information system’ throughout this review.

A separate draft list of over 80 general non-IAS focused online databases, information systems and Web pages including those containing biodiversity, taxonomic, bibliographic, graphic, geographic (maps), research, expertise and other related biological/ecological information, was also collected during this research. These databases will be reviewed for IAS content, and cataloged along with the list of IAS databases in support of a status assessment of international IAS resources. Both lists will be posted on the Web and maintained and updated by the NBII as one contribution to the GISIN. The lists will be made accessible through <http://www.invasivespecies.net/gisin.htm>. They are currently available in draft form at <http://invasivespecies.nbii.gov/as/gisin.htm>.

Standards for Biodiversity Data Exchange

Standards including metadata schemas, formats, and protocols for information management have been developed and followed by various groups for many years, as a simple response to the need to organize and provide access to data in a standardized way. Librarians, herbarium and museum/specimen collection managers, catalogers and database developers are some of the diverse types of information managers that are involved in developing, implementing, endorsing and in some cases, enforcing the accepted standard, format, or protocol sanctioned for use with their specific type of data. A new justification for strict adherence to standards in information management is the increase in global data exchange and the increased need to standardize the management and exchange of biodiversity data. Global trade and travel continue to increase, all but eliminating borders, and subsequently increasing the need for efficient data exchange between very disparate users and often for very different purposes despite a common need for data. The need for efficient exchange of biodiversity information in combating IAS is no different, and the exchange of information requires a standardized approach if the information is to retain its ‘recyclability’ and application to the IAS issue and other as yet unidentified potential applications.

In response to calls for the development of information systems to support decision-making and IAS management, monitoring and control efforts, numerous recommendations for information management, exchange and overall database/information system design have been presented (Green, 1994; WCMC, 1996; Reynolds & Busby, 1996; Jasieniuk et al., 1999; Ricciardi et al., 2000; McNeely, 2000; McNeely et al., 2001, Schmitz & Simberloff, 2001). At the 6^th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the CBC (COP6), the CBD recommend specific formats, protocols and standards to improve exchange and management of global biodiversity information and charged GISP with the task of implementing them within the Global Invasive Species Information Network (GISIN) (CBD-COP, 2002). The formats, standards and protocols recommended by the CBD are:

Formats: Dublin Core Metadata Initiative; Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) (later ISO 19115); Federal Geographic Data Committee Biological Data Profile; BIB-1; XML (eXtensible Markup Language) as a description language; and HTML (HyperText Markup Language) [version] 3.1 as a presentation language.
Standards: ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 19115 spatial metadata; ISO 23950 interoperability; ISO 2788 Thesauri; ISO 3166 country codes; ISO 635 language codes; Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) Request For Comments (RFC) – various; Open GIS (Geographic Information System) Consortium; World Wide Web Consortium (W3C); and GBIF.
Protocols: z39.50; http (HyperText Transfer Protocol); ftp (File Transfer Protocol); and TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol).

Formats and Protocols Described

The ISO Standards are presented in detail by the ISO on the Web (ISO, n.d.). The Formats and Protocols recommended at the COP6 are briefly described in the following paragraphs.

The Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI) is an organization that promotes the adoption of interoperable metadata standards and develops specialized metadata vocabularies for describing resources, enabling more intelligent information discovery systems (DCMI, n.d.). The DCMI seeks to make location of resources using the Internet, easier. It develops metadata standards for cross-domain discovery, defines frameworks for the interoperation of metadata sets, and facilitates the development of community- or disciplinary-specific metadata sets (DCMI, n.d.).

The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) is a committee that is composed of representatives from the U.S. Executive Office of the President, Cabinet-level and independent agencies. The FGDC is developing the U.S. National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) in cooperation with organizations from State, local and tribal governments, the academic community, and the private sector. This Infrastructure defines policies, standards, and procedures for cooperative production and sharing of geographic data (FGDC & USGS, 1999). The Biological Data Profile (BDP), developed through a cooperative effort between the FGDC and the USGS Biological Resources Discipline, supports the biological data collection and processing with the objective of providing a set of common terminology and definitions for biological data documentation. The BDP creates extended elements and a profile of the FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC & USGS, 1999).

An Attribute Set is used to define standard identifiers for referring to searchable and retrievable fields within databases. BIB-1 is a Bibliographic Attribute Set of the Z39.50 Information Retrieval Protocol that is primarily applicable to bibliographic searches (CAS, 2004). In order to expand the capabilities of the BIB-1 Attribute Set to support searching of data other than that of a bibliographic nature, the Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS), a division of the American Chemical Society (ACS), developed the Scientific and Technical Attribute and Element Set (STAS). The STAS, a superset of the BIB-1 Attribute Set, uses the Z39.50 Protocol to improve interoperability among consumers and providers of scientific, technical, and related information (CAS, 2004). “Since many scientific and technical databases also contain bibliographic data, the bib-1 Attribute Set supports access to a subset of their data and services. However, prior to the development of STAS, there was no standard way to refer to a large number of the non-bibliographic searchable and retrievable fields within scientific and technical databases.” (CAS, 2004).

The Z39.50 Information Retrieval protocol is defined under the National Information Standards Organization (NISO) Information Retrieval: Application Service Definition & Protocol Specification Standard (NISO, 2003). This protocol “addresses communication between information retrieval applications at the client and server.” (NISO, p. i, 2003).

Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a ‘flexible text format’ that was derived from Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML). XML was originally designed to meet the challenges of large-scale electronic publishing (W3C, 2003). The language is now being increasingly applied in data-exchange operations involving a diverse variety of data on the Internet (W3C, 2003).

HyperText Markup Language (HTML) is used to create hypertext documents that are portable from one platform to another. “HTML documents are SGML documents with general semantics that are appropriate for representing information from a wide range of applications” (W3C^1,2, n.d.). The specification for HTML version 3.0 was released in March of 1995 and was superceded by HTML 3.2 in January of 1997 (W3C¹, n.d.; Raggett et al., 1998). The 3.1 version of HTML never truly existed – at least not by that versioning definition. HTML version 3.2 was technically the format recommended by the CBD-COP. However, HTML version 4.0, an SGML application conforming to International Standard ISO 8879 – Standard Generalized Markup Language, became a Recommendation of the W3C in 1998 (Raggett et al., 1998; W3C, 1999). The most recent specification, defining the first HTML version 4.01 Recommendation, was released by the W3C in 1999 (W3C, 1999).

Having already been recognized as accepted formats, standards and protocols with respect to existing applications of information management other than IAS, many of the CBD-COP’s recommendations were implemented by stakeholders involved in developing various online biodiversity information systems even prior to their articulation in the COP6 Report.

Formats and Protocols Implemented in IAS Information Management Products

The CBD-COP6 further elaborated on these recommendations with respect to the establishment of the GISIN, and also recommended the development of invasive species regional hubs that would build on existing networks and include new initiatives and projects (CBD-COP6, 2002). In 1996, the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC) described the primary role of a hub as facilitating “information generation by stakeholders” (WCMC, p. 33, 1996). However, in the context of the CBD and the IAS threat, this definition has evolved to include the facilitation of information exchange between stakeholders.

Global Biodiversity Information Facility’s Information Management Products

Seeking to “contribute to economic growth, ecological sustainability, social outcomes and scientific research by increasing the utility, availability and completeness of primary scientific biodiversity information available on the Internet”, the GBIF employs the Distributed Generic Information Retrieval (DiGIR) client/server protocol for retrieving information from specimen-based databases participating in the NBII United States Node to GBIF (GBIF, n.d.). In order to participate in this portal, databases must support metadata schema including the Darwin Core Metadata Schema, the Access to Biological Collection Data (ABCD) Schema and the BDP of the FGCD Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata. The NBII GBIF Web site also references the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS), which has also been endorsed by the CBD-COP; the Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) protocol; and other standards and formats listed by the NBII and the Taxonomic Database Working Group (TDWG) Subgroup on Biological Data Collection (GBIF, n.d.).

DiGIR, Species Analyst, and Darwin Core Information Management Products

The DiGIR protocol is based on HTTP, XML and UDDI (SourceForge.net, n.d.) and is being actively developed as part of the Species Analyst research project (Speciesanalyst.net, 2003). This project, based at the University of Kansas Natural History Museum, is developing standards and software tools for accessing natural history collections and observation databases (Speciesanalyst.net, 2003). The Species Analyst is capable of accessing multiple databases residing on remote and separate servers, including databases that were compiled with incompatible software (Kaiser 1999 cited in Ricciardi et al., 2000; IABIN^{2, 3}, 2002). It was originally based on the Z39.50 Information Retrieval Protocol (Kaiser 1999 cited in Ricciardi et al., 2000). However, the DiGIR protocol, considered to be a replacement for Z39.50, is being “actively developed and will gradually replace the Z39.50 infrastructure over time” (Speciesanalyst.net, 2003).

The Darwin Core profile, also being developed under the Species Analyst project, “was originally intended for use with the Z39.50 protocol”. However, this profile may also be applied to defining searches and XML content generated by databases served using HTTP (Speciesanalyst.net, 2003). It describes the minimum set of standards for search and retrieval (Speciesanalyst.net, 2003). The Species Analyst creates a “Virtual Museum” through integration of data from dozens of institutions, dramatically increasing research efficiency. This network links Internet users to multiple databases and allows them to retrieve data through access portals (²IABIN, 2002). Through a new initiative, supported by the USDOS, the Species Analyst will be applied to the problem of invasive species (²IABIN, 2002).

International Data Management Issues: Standards, Language, Bandwidth

When considering the concept of international data exchange via the Internet, several issues arise that are not necessarily related to or addressed by the adoption of formats, standards or protocols for information exchange. Given that IAS data exists, the accessibility of the data is the strongest factor affecting its availability to the diverse population of potential users, and its applicability to their IAS information needs. When serving information internationally, via the Internet, consideration must be given not only to technological standards such as what programming language or information management protocols to use, but also to the accommodation of variable-bandwidth users, backwards compatibility with Internet browser applications and database or data management software, semantics and language. These issues represent the less tangible limitations that are often experienced by those seeking access to information resources.

While tangible technology-related limitations can be overcome to some degree through financial and capacity-building support from collaborators; less tangible limitations may be addressed at the origin or during development of the information resource. Taking language as an example, the top five spoken languages in the world are 1) Mandarin [Chinese], 2) English, 3) Hindu-stani, 4) Spanish and 5) Portuguese (Global Reach, 2004). In comparison, the top 5 languages in which Web content is currently described, include 1) English, 2) Japanese, 3) German, 4) Chinese and 5) French (Global Reach, 2004). In view of these statistics, the question arises as to whether a standard group of languages, such as the latter group, should be selected for translating Web-based IAS information in order to make the data accessible to the widest possible range of users?

Almost all of the databases located during the research conducted for this report, were entirely or at least partially available in English, and the vast majority originated in the U.S., or focused on or contained IAS information specific to the North American continent. Considering that the research was carried out in English, at a U.S.-based Internet location, it is possible that the apparent English/U.S. bias in the resulting list of databases is also a reflection of the research methodology. In order to avoid excessive search-method bias, efforts were made to locate and translate non-English IAS information resources whenever possible, using Internet tools such as Google’s^© language translation service. Each of the five most commonly spoken languages in the world and those listed for Web content description are represented in the research results, with the exceptions of Hindu-stani and Japanese. Additional languages supported by the online databases identified in the research included Polish, Estonian, Finnish, Danish and Swedish.

FishBase and Language Management

A system that is pioneering the translation of biodiversity data, including IAS information, is FishBase (#144) – a Global Information System on Fishes. This database supports no less than 14 languages (English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Chinese, Arabic, Russian, Japanese, Hindi and Greek). This was achieved in part, through utilization of the Systran^© Web service, which is the engine that supports the translation routines of Google^©, AOL^© - America Online, Inc., and AltaVista© (C. Casal, Personal Communication, 2004). The problem presented by context-dependent or context-sensitive translation is being addressed through collaborative efforts among Dr. Bernd Ueberschär and Dr. Rainer Froese (both of the Institute of Marine Research, University of Kiel, Germany), the FishBase team and Systran^© – Information and Translation Technologies (C. Casal, Personal Communication, 2004).

International IAS Information Progress and Products

While standards and protocols are being developed, agreed upon and implemented, another important initial step in setting up sources of information exchange involves the assessment of the status of IAS-related activities and information resources currently existing throughout the world (Ricciardi et al., 2000). This review has been written and arranged in the context of seven workshops that were held in different regions around the globe, to assess the threats to biodiversity and national economic development posed by IAS (Addendum 2; USDOS, USDOI & USAID, 2003). In addition to the information obtained at these meetings, the following discussion provides an assessment of the status of IAS-related online databases and information systems that are being developed throughout the world.

The Nordic/Baltic Region and Europe

The Nordic/Baltic Region

Baltic Sea countries including the Russian Federation, Norway and Iceland, and representatives from the European Union met at the 2001 Nordic/Baltic regional workshop. At this workshop recommendations were made for the establishment of a Baltic/Nordic Alien Species Task Force and development of a regional catalog of alien species databases, to be hosted on the Internet by GISP (MEE et al., n.d.; and 2002). This was considered to be a first step in the development of a regional information network on alien species, a part of the global invasive species information network (MEE et al., p. 8, 2002). The Nordic/Baltic workshop was followed-up by a workshop in Tallinn, Estonia, held in May 2002. Representatives from nine countries surrounding the Baltic Sea as well as North America discussed the establishment of an IAS database network and developed a plan for a regional invasive alien species information network and inventory/monitoring system at the Estonian workshop (USDOS, USDOI & USAID, 2003).

Databases presented at the Estonian meeting included the Baltic Sea Alien Species Database (#14) that was established by the Baltic Marine Biologists Working Group on Non-indigenous Estuarine and Marine Organisms (NEMO). This database is linked to the Regional Biological Invasions Center information system (RBIC) (#7). It is intended to operate as a regional node in the GISIN (CBD, 2002). The RBIC has operated as a web portal, providing access to the global, regional, sub-regional and national Internet resources on biological invasions since 2001 (V. Panov, Personal Communication, 2004). It currently serves as a regional pan-European clearinghouse on invasive alien species, and as a regional information hub of the GISIN (V. Panov, Personal Communication, 2004). RBIC hosts the RBIC Illustrated Database of Aquatic Invasive Species of Europe (#7.i), GIS INVADER (GIS on Aquatic Alien Species of the Baltic Sea) (#7.ii), an experts database of the European Research Network on Aquatic Invasive Species (ERNAIS) (#7.iii), and the Alien Species of North-West Russia information system (#7.v) (under development).

The RBIC network is further expanded through a linkage with GISP’s Global Invasive Species Database (# 1) (GISD), which is in turn, linked to the Caspian Sea Biodiversity Database (#25). The GISD includes the 100 of the World’s Worst Invasive Alien Species (#2) database (Waage, 1999). It was developed by the Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG) (IUCN/SSC-ISSG, 2001; Panov & Gollasch, p. 117, 2004).

A German database on biological and ecological traits of native and alien plant species, BIOLFLOR (#41), was also presented at the Estonian meeting. Germany reported a large number of databases, but no central national database covering all ecosystems. They have however developed an internet accessible database, NeoFlora (#42) which covers alien vascular plant species. (MEE et al., p. 4, 2002). The Alien Species Polish Database (#15), with reference to the involvement of GISP, ISSG and the IUCN in addressing the IAS issue, proposes a linkage with the Nordic Baltic Network of/for Invasive Species (NOBANIS) (#8), which is also hosted by the RBIC. The Nordic Council of Ministers (Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland) established a working group which produced a joint report, Introduced Species in the Nordic Countries (2001). This report included 17 case studies on IAS problems in shared marine, terrestrial and limnic environments and is available from the recently established Nordic Network on Introduced Species (NNIS) (#10). The NNIS provides information on introduced species in the Nordic countries and links to other related sites (CBD, 2002). The similarly named Nordic-Baltic Invasive Species Informational Network (#9) is also under development.

Constituting another linked participant in the NNIS, Denmark has compiled a list of 1200 introduced species on the Danish Forest and Nature Agency’s Web site (#13) (MEE et al., 2002). The Estonian Alien Species Database (#11) provides information on alien animals and plants, including some aquatic species, in Estonia. Finland did not report having a national IAS-specific database but IAS data is contained within LUMONET (#16), a biodiversity information system maintained by the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) that functions as the Finnish CHM of the CBD (MEE et al., 2002). Latvia does not have a national IAS-database. It does however have individual species-specific databases that could be networked through a mechanism such as the NNIS. Lithuania has prioritized the gathering of information for databases, and has developed a specific data format for data-gathering institutions to follow. Rounding out the IAS-database related activities of the Nordic/Baltic region, Swedish EnviroNet’s Environmental Catalogue (#17) contains a section of information on environmental threats that includes the introduction and spread of alien organisms in Sweden (MEE et al., 2002).

Europe

Cooperation with the Baltic Sea nations involves four Member States of the European Union (Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Finland) (CBD, 2002). Development of the European Research Network on Aquatic Invasive Species (ERNAIS) was initiated in 2001. The goal of this program is the development of an international network of European databases on Aquatic Invasive/Alien Species that links existing databases in Europe and worldwide (CBD, Appendix 2 p. 6, 2002). As mentioned earlier, the ERNAIS is hosted by the RBIC. The 1979 Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Resources (Bern Convention), to which 38 European states are party, requires Parties “to strictly control the introduction of invasive species” (CBD, p. 5, 2002). This Convention’s initiative for European Strategy on Invasive Alien Species, which began in 2000, assessed the constraints faced by many European countries in their IAS efforts, including the “shortage and inaccessibility of scientific information on IAS” (CBD, p. 5, 2002). Methods and tasks outlined by this convention for European nations to undertake in combating IAS issues, include the development of information systems, networks and other information resources (Genovesi & Shine, 2002).

European database and information system development efforts focus mainly on addressing the threat of aquatic IAS. In their 2004 article on aquatic alien species in Europe, Panov and Gollasch found that information on these species is available in national, regional and global databases and information systems. They highlighted the following sources for European aquatic invasive species information:

· Food and Agriculture Organization’s Database on Introductions of Aquatic Species (DIAS) (#91);

· Global Information System on Fishes (FishBase) (#144);

· Global Ballast Water Management Programme (GloBallast) (#127);

· Directory of Non-native Marine Species in British Waters (#19);

· Chinese Mitten Crab Home Page (#20);

· Biological Records Center (BRC) Web site (#21);

· Marine Alien Species of Estonia Web site (#12);

· Caulerpa taxifolia in the Mediterranean Web site (#23);

· CIESM Atlas of Exotic Species [in the Mediterranean Sea] (#22);

· Caspian Sea Biodiversity Database (CSBD) (#25);

· Baltic Sea Alien Species Database (#14); and the

· Regional Biological Invasions Center Information System (RBIC) (#7).

Not all of these European sources focus specifically on IAS in the European region alone, nor are they all hosted online by European organizations. However, the European Community Biodiversity Clearing-House Mechanism (EC-CHM) representing the regional CHM of the CBD attempts to address information gaps. It links to national CHMs, European organizations and networks relevant to biodiversity issues, and the GBIF. The EC-CHM also incorporates databases on nature, hunting, tourism, forestry, agriculture, land cover, fisheries and climate change. There are currently 19 linked nature conservation databases, including the EU Wildlife Trade Reference Database, LIFE databases and the World Conservation Monitoring Centre’s protected area database included in the EC-CHM (CBD, p. 30, 2002). The European Nature Information System (EUNIS) a “species module” of the EC-CHM., Focused initially on protected and rare species data for Europe, the EUNIS was recently linked with FishBase (# 144), the Atlas Florae Europaeae database and the Euromed+Plantbase project. The CBD (2002) reports that the EUNIS currently provides very little specific coverage of introduced species in Europe but that the CIESM Atlas of Exotic Species in the Mediterranean Sea database (#22), a digital atlas for exotic species of fish and some shellfish (crustaceans and molluscs), represents the one EUNIS project that addresses introduced species.

The Americas (including Canada, United States, Mexico, Mesoamerica and South America)

Impact in the United States

Almost every U.S. State hosts its own online IAS list, database or information system. This plethora of information resources, now almost certainly exhibiting data overlap and repeated effort, should be networked for national gain and eventually linked with international collaborators, providing a global advantage in addressing the IAS threat. Government and non-government organizations are indeed now taking steps towards development of a coordinated national network of these systems.

As part of a 1998 workshop on databases for nonindigenous plants held in the United States, Jacono and Boydstun (1998) reviewed 17 invasive species databases, some available online, and found that half of them addressed nonindigenous plants exclusively while the remainder included both native and alien plants. At the time, Jacono and Boydstun (1998) indicated that IAS vertebrates and biocontrol agents were more commonly addressed by databases. In 1999, Gregg examined 34 databases, including those reviewed in the 1998 workshop. He found that of those 34 databases, 28 were available online, 21 focused “primarily or exclusively on nonindigenous species” and 14 did not specifically focus on nonindigenous species, but did provide useful data (Ridgway et al., 1999). In contrast, Ricciardi et al. (2000) highlighted the fact that support for database development in the U.S. is often derived from affected industries, namely agriculture, when they reported that most U.S. online databases were “devoted to nonindigenous terrestrial plants, particularly agricultural pests”. They also found that online databases representing information for marine invasive species affecting the U.S., were also limited in number.

In January of 2001, in response to an Invasive Species Executive Order 13112 issued by then President Bill Clinton, the U.S. National Invasive Species Council (NISC), developed the ‘National Management Plan on Invasive Species’. Among other things, the Executive Order directed the NISC to, “identify recommendations for international cooperation” and to “facilitate a coordinated information network on invasive species” (Schmitz & Simberloff, p. 58, 2001). Despite Schmitz and Simberloff’s (2001) suggestion that the council lacked “the infrastructure, support, resources, and mechanisms to synchronize the thousands of prevention, management, and research programs that existed” (p. 62), several major U.S. IAS information systems have been developed by private, non-government and government organizations, lending support to the tasks of the NISC.

United States Government IAS Information Systems

Some of the State IAS databases identified during the research for this review included the CalWeed Database (#80) and Cal-IPC List (#81) for the state of California, the Invasive Plant Atlas of N