ATBI? A reality any longer or just hype?

[christian thompson]

Mike and others:

You need first the clarify your definitions. As far as I know only the
GSMNP project pretends to be an ALL TAXA biodiversity Inventory.  Costa Rica
clearly and definitely abandoned Dan Janzen's ATBI concept as unrealistic
and impossible, settling instead on a SELECTED Taxa inventory. And while
they did targeted a few large groups like the flies (Diptera), beetles
(Coleoptera), your wasps, etc, (Hymenoptera) for inventory work, you know
that even in these groups there is no effort being taken to even do ALL the
species in those groups.

The sad fact is no one except perhaps John Pickering dares to really even
think about ALL taxa inventories. Every one wants to wave the words ATBI
like a flag to attach money, news coverage, PR, but when it comes to really
doing the inventory or even planning to do the inventory, then it becomes we
will do the birds, butterflies and my group as ALL taxa is an impossibility
as the costs are too great, the time required too long, and people resources
not available.

The other sad fact is how much as been wasted by the community in a series
of efforts to do inventory work over the past decade and how little has
actually got down to peons, the alpha taxonomists, who are expected to do
the work. You know the numbers for Costa Rica, millions for Costa Rican
"infrastructure," a few plane tickets and in country per diem for the
taxonomists. And what do we get? Bad press because we, taxonomists, are
inefficient, slow to produce, etc.  Look at the past decade, we have had
Systematics Agenda 2000, ATBI, Species2000, ITIS, USOBI, etc., and we have
begun this new Millennium with GTI, GBIF, ALL, etc. And where are we as a
community? Yes, PEET has been a success, we are beginning to get a cohort of
the best trained systematists ever, but there are now fewer jobs for them
than there were before. For the insect order Diptera (flies), which
represents 10% of the known biodiversity, I have watched over that past
decade or more the community lose more than 1/2 the positions devoted to the
systematics of flies. And while INBIO is doing an amazing job considering
the resources, etc. to do ALL we must do more than Costa Rica. What is
happening in New Guinea, Indonesia, India, Africa, etc.?

Yes, I am too pessmistic, but when we are losing our Ebbe Nielsens you have
to wonder whether the systematics community has fallen below its critical
mass and ALL is indeed to large a concept to shallow anymore.

But to paraphase Scarlet O'Hara's last words in "Gone with the Wind,"
Tomorrow I will go back to INBIO, GSMNP, etc.

Smile :-)

F. Christian Thompson
Systematic Entomology Lab., ARS, USDA
Smithsonian Institution
Washington, D. C. 20560-0169
(202) 382-1800 voice
(202) 786-9422 FAX
cthompso at sel.barc.usda.gov
visit our Diptera site at www.diptera.org

>>> Michael Sharkey <msharkey at CA.UKY.EDU> 03/05 9:19 PM >>>
I would like to get a list of ATBI's (All Taxa Biodiversity Inventories)
that are being started.  There are the initiatives in the Great Smoky
Mountain National Park and Costa Rica....any other?  I would like to know
about much smaller projects as well as major endeavors.

Thanks,
Mike

Dr. Michael J. Sharkey
Department of Entomology
S-227 Ag. Science Building N.
University of Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky 40546-0091
email msharkey at ca.uky.edu
tel (859)257-9364
fax (859)323-1120
home page
http://www.uky.edu/~mjshar0