The initial version of the map tool released today is intended to introduce it to the broader public.
A Yale-led research team has opened to the public a demonstration version of its “Map of Life,” an ambitious Web-based endeavor to depict how all living things on the planet, animals and plants alike, are distributed geographically.
Built on a Google Maps platform, the debut version allows anyone with an Internet connection to map the known global distribution of almost all 30,000 species of terrestrial vertebrate animals, including mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and North American fresh water fish.
“It is the where and the when of a species,” said Walter Jetz, associate professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at Yale University and the project lead. “It puts at your fingertips the geographic diversity of life. Ultimately, the hope is for this literally to include hundreds of thousands of animals and plants, and show how much or indeed how little we know of their whereabouts.”
via Yale University – Eric Gershon
The Latest News: Map of Life updated minute-by-minute