Report prepared for the Experts Meeting Towards the Implementation of a Global Invasive Species
Information Network (GISIN), 6-8 April, 2004. Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Page 84
8/30/2004
Botanical gardens and zoos
NGOs
Research institutes and
centers
Universities and academic communities
Biological collections
Networks
National framework for information managing
Biodiversity
SIB
SIAC
System of systems
An IAS Database in the
Colombian Biodiversity
Framework
Ángela M. Suárez-Mayorga, Chief Data
Administrator, Biodiversity Information System,
Alexander von Humboldt Biodiversity Research
Institute, Cra. 13 No. 28-01 Piso 7, Bogota,
D.C., 1321 Colombia
Abstract
The Colombian Invasive Species
Database (CISD) is one of the databases
integrated to the Biodiversity Information System
of Colombia (SIB, after its name in Spanish).
SIB is a distributed system conceived as a
national alliance to efficiently manage the
information about the biodiversity of the country.
Like other integrated databases, CISD is
actually working under a robust database
structure known as “biological records” where
every unit recorded is tied to five reference
components: spatial, temporal, classification,
conceptual, and source. Each component
(except the temporal one) is supported by a
reference dataset, provided–or recommended–
by the system and administered by the
coordinator team.
Using that structure allows everyone to
manage information about any biological entity
(from species to ecosystem), even
simultaneously, as long as three conditions are
met: 1) entities, methods, and attributes of
interest are defined, 2) almost all the contents
come from controlled languages, i.e. authority
files, and 3) relationships among entities and
between them and their references are
established. The invasive alien species (IAS)
working group of Instituto Humboldt and the
coordinating team of SIB are responsible for
fulfilling those requirements. The information
structured that way will be ready to be shared in
Extensible Markup Language (XML) format, so
interoperability of CISD with other databases,
systems or networks (the Inter-American
Biodiversity Information Network or the Global
Biodiversity Information Facility, for example) is
assured.
Introduction
Colombia is a country that is considered to
be mega-diverse. With a scientific tradition
of more than 200 years, starting from the
first botanical expedition in 1765, the
country has a well established (but not
necessarily well funded), active, working
academic and scientific community that is
generating significant amounts of
information about many topics, including
biodiversity. Colombia has more species of
frogs and birds than any other country in the
world. It hosts a large number of species of
plants, freshwater fishes, butterflies, and
reptiles.
Colombia has more species of frogs
and birds than any other country in
the world.
Taking the model of Noss (1990) as the
model for biodiversity, most of the work that
has been completed has focused on the
composition of the country’s biodiversity
rather than on structure or function.
In terms of the Convention on Biological
Data (CBD), Colombia continues to focus
scientific work mainly on quantifying or
qualifying biodiversity, and very little on
conservation and use studies. However, as
Colombia has a high cultural diversity, these
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