Towards a global list of accepted species II. Consequences of inadequate taxonomic list governance

Scott A. Thomson, Kevin Thiele, Stijn Conix, Les Christidis, Mark John Costello, Donald Hobern, Svetlana Nikolaeva, Richard L. Pyle, Peter Paul van Dijk, Haylee Weaver, Frank E. Zachos, Zhi Qiang Zhang, Stephen T. Garnett

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Species lists are widely used in legislation and regulation to manage and conserve biodiversity. In this paper, we explore the issues caused by the lack of an adequately governed and universally accepted list of the world’s species. These include lack of quality control, duplicated effort, conflicts of interest, lack of currency, and confusion in the scientific use of taxonomic information. If species lists are to fulfill their role efficiently, then the governance systems underlying their creation must keep pace. Fortunately, modernization of species list governance is now possible as a result of advances in biodiversity informatics and two decades of experience working to create the backbone of a global species list.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)623-630
Number of pages8
JournalOrganisms Diversity and Evolution
Volume21
Issue number4
Early online dateOct 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2021

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