[Taxacom] Wikispecies is not a database

[Tony.Rees at csiro.au]

Hi Bob, all,

Well, to take your argument further, libraries *need* books to put on their shelves and organize, but authors do not *need* libraries... however I think you will agree that if not them, somebody does. A book which is on no library shelf is effectively inaccessible (at least in the pre-digital age) to the majority of potential readers.

OK, I know this analogy has its limits, but consider the following more appropriate analogy:
The 'OLs (COL, EOL, GBIF, etc.), also wikiXXX are the first port of call for many users interested in biodiversity - who do not have time or the facility to consult every original primary publication. Now EOL and GBIF get their current core taxonomic "backbone" information from COL, which is the sum of "taxonomic slice" specific efforts from the likes of Index Fungorum, AlgaeBase, etc. plus ITIS. Let's focus on shall we say Index Fungorum. If someone publishes a new fungus species or makes a taxonomic rearrangement, then it is IF's self-appointed task to pick this up and reflect it in the current online version of IF, feed it through to COL for the next annual edition, thence it will reach EOL, GBIF, and the others in due course (presuming all the relevant data flow mechanisms are in place and functioning as intended). So in almost an exact equivalent sense, if IF anf the other aggregators are not doing their job properly, the new information is not visible to the vast majority of persons likely to require it, who may not be familiar with the specialist fungus literature (or whose library may not have a current subscription to the relevant journal maybe). As well expressed by Stephen in previous posts, there may be at least one alternative route for expression of new work in widely visible systems of the wikiXXX variety, but the issue is essentially the same - exposure/integration with related information is good, maybe even essential, not bad.

I think we have had this conversation before... Taxonomists may not strictly *need* aggregators in order to do their taxonomy, but for it to have its relevant impact they possibly do...

Just my 2 cents' worth (as always), and greetings to a fellow Tasmanian - maybe we will meet and share a millipede some day...

Regards - Tony