taxon-match-bar.md

Taxon match bar

Description

The taxon match bar groups the occurrences of a dataset in categories based on how well the taxon could be matched with the GBIF taxonomic backbone. This functionality is mainly based on the taxon match issues assigned by GBIF as part of its occurrence processing. It allows the user and data publisher to discover how well the taxa of a dataset align with the GBIF taxonomic backbone.

How we categorize

Taxon found in taxonomic backbone

The occurrences does not fall in any of the other categories.

Taxon found in taxonomic backbone using fuzzy match

The occurrence has a scientific name and the following issue: TAXON_MATCH_FUZZY

Taxon not found in taxonomic backbone, but a higher taxon was

The occurrence has a scientific name and the following issue: TAXON_MATCH_HIGHERRANK

Taxon not found in taxonomic backbone

The occurrence has a scientific name and the following issue: TAXON_MATCH_NONE

Taxon not provided

The occurrence does not have a scientific name. Note that GBIF will always attempt to use the scientificName provided by the publisher or build one from the atomized fields genus, specificEpithet, etc. For recent datasets, TAXON_MATCH_NONE is also applied to occurrences with no scientificName, but we categorize those here as not provided.

Suggestions for improvement

• For matched taxa, indicate the taxon rank of the determination, so the user can better assess the fitness for use.
• For unmatched taxa, assess if the scientificName format is valid.
• For unmatched taxa, assess if the scientificName could be found using other checklists.