If you have taken part in some wildlife surveys or made some ad-hoc wildlife observations, you might be wondering where you should upload your results.
On this page, you can learn more about places you can put your data (data repositories), as well as places you can explore wildlife records (data sources).
Highlights
- Data repositories: How to share your wildlife observations with online repositories and apps such as iNaturalist and iRecord.
- Data sources: How to explore existing wildlife records from various sources, such as the National Biodiversity Network Atlas, the MAGIC Map and the BSBI Plant Atlas.
- Biodiversity improvement: Using open access data to make decisions on how to enhance your local green space for biodiversity, such as providing habitat or food for local species.
Nature Recording Hub
Discover how to record the wildlife in your urban environment.
Data repositories
If you have made a biological record, there are several places, or repositories, you can submit your data to.
If the biological record you made was part of a national recording scheme (such as the Big Butterfly Count, Big Garden Birdwatch or National Amphibian Survey), you can submit your results to the scheme itself. These popular national schemes will have their own repository online to which you can add your results.
If your records are not for a national recording scheme, are more ad-hoc, or if you have a dataset kept in a notebook or saved in a spreadsheet, there are two main options for where to put your data:
- You could send your records directly to your Local Environmental Records Centre.
- You can upload them to one of the two main biological recording apps or websites: iNaturalist UK or iRecord. You can learn a little more about these apps and how they differ below.
What's the difference between iNaturalist and iRecord?
iNaturalist
What is it and who is it suitable for?
iNaturalist is a user-friendly app and website which is great for those who are new to biological recording. It is also useful for more experienced recorders or groups who want to collect records for a project or an event such as a BioBlitz. iNaturalist is useful if you do not know what species you have recorded or how to identify it.
How are species identified and the records checked?
iNaturalist provides help with species identification using image recognition software. If you have a photograph but are not sure what species you have found, this can be really helpful. You can also upload sound recordings to help identify species. Other users will then agree with your identification or suggest another, so the identification is effectively crowd sourced.
How are records shared?
Records which reach ‘research grade’ (meaning they have sufficient information and a consensus on the identification) are automatically transferred to iRecord, where they can be verified by experts and then passed on to Local Environmental Records Centres. These research grade records therefore contribute to national datasets of biological records.
Options for pooling records
iNaturalist gives you the ability to make ‘Projects’ to pool your observations with other recorders. For example, if you want to collect records from your local park or community garden, a Project is a great way to keep track of people’s observations in one place.
It is best to use the iNaturalist website (rather than the app) to set up a Project: you can create a URL to share with your fellow recorders to find the project easily, nominate several administrators to help run it, add a start and end date and even create a leaderboard to reward people who contribute the most records.
If you create several projects over time you can link them and compare them under an ‘Umbrella Project’. This would be useful if you host a BioBlitz every year in your park, for example, and want to compare the results over time. You can also browse existing Projects to take part in.
How to use it
You can visit the iNaturalist UK website, download the iNaturalist app and register for free with an email address. You can read a guide to using iNaturalist (PDF 386 KB). The National Biodiversity Network also have a useful summary of how iNaturalist data is used and how you can help with the verification process when you submit your records.
For kids…Seek
iNaturalist also provides a standalone app, Seek, which is designed to be used by children under 13. It does not require a log in and the observations you make in the app are stored there, rather than shared with any recording schemes or with iNaturalist itself.
If you want your records to go into a database, an older child or adult can add them to iNaturalist separately.
Seek uses image recognition to help you identify species. You can earn ‘badges’ for observing different species groups and taking part in challenges. It is a great option for families or groups of kids to use to explore nature together and get involved with observing wildlife.
iRecord
What is it and who is it suitable for?
iRecord is a website and app for sharing wildlife observations. It is often used by more experienced wildlife recorders, but it is still suitable for beginners. iRecord is better for those who have already identified the species they have recorded.
How are species identified and the records checked?
iRecord supports some image recognition software to help you identify a species from a photo. However, it is not designed to identify a species for you, so if you have recorded something you are unsure of it is often best to use iNaturalist instead.
Once you submit a record with an identification and photograph, the record will be checked by an expert volunteer verifier (where possible). You can see when your records have been accepted as correct, or alternative identifications suggested. Not all records are reviewed, so don't be concerned if your record isn't verified straight away.
How are records shared?
Verified records are shared with national recording schemes, Local Environmental Records Centres and the National Biodiversity Network Atlas (see the box further down this page).
Options for pooling records
Like ‘Projects’ on iNaturalist, ‘Activities’ on iRecord are a way to pool records for a place, topic or event.
You can browse existing Activities in your area or create your own Activity. For example, you could set up an Activity for your local park into which all the members of your ‘friends of’ group can upload their wildlife observations.
You can find a guide to setting up an Activity here. There is also separate advice for setting up an Activity for a BioBlitz on iRecord here. This is recommended if the BioBlitz recorders are all more experienced in species identification; if you have a range of abilities then iNaturalist may be more suitable.
How to use it
You can visit the iRecord website, download the app and register for free using your email address. You can then start uploading wildlife records with photographs.
iRecord provides lots of guidance in the ‘Help’ section of the website. You can also find a detailed guide to using iRecord here.
How to explore local wildlife records to find ways to improve biodiversity
If you are looking for ways to improve your local green space for biodiversity, it can be useful to look at open access data for the area to see what habitats and species have already been recorded. Knowing what species have been recorded nearby and what habitats are close to, or connected to, your site can help you make decisions on the kinds of interventions that will benefit local biodiversity.
Using maps and satellite imagery (like Google Earth) can help you spot green corridors that might connect your site to others, through which species might be able to colonise your site. You could then provide habitat for local species you want to attract, perhaps by providing a pond, a particular food plant, or a shelter feature such as a log pile.
There are a lots of data sources you can explore: some are national and some are more local and specific to particular topics. To get you started, we've listed some data sources below that you could browse.
Data sources
The National Biodiversity Network (NBN) Atlas
The National Biodiversity Network’s database holds over 127 million species records. The data come from hundreds of partners, including Local Environmental Records Centres, conservation organisations and national recording schemes like those signposted in our Recording Hub catalogues.
You can use the Atlas to explore the distributions of species, look for biological records in your local area, or get into more detailed analyses using the advanced search tools. You can make an account for free to use the Atlas for non-commercial purposes.
The NBN provide some really helpful video tutorials showing you how to use the Atlas, as well as step by step help guides.
Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland (BSBI) Plant Atlas
If you would like to learn about the plants in your area and across Britain and Ireland, you can look at the results of the ‘Plant Atlas 2020’ put together by BSBI. The results are from the most comprehensive survey of plants ever carried out in Britain and Ireland and the Atlas provides an amazingly detailed and thorough dataset. Records were provided mainly by volunteer recorders of the BSBI.
The website allows you to explore records in hectads (10x10km grid squares), and learn about the plant species’ national status, habitats, distributions and trends. There are also photographs for each species.
MAGIC Map
MAGIC stands for ‘Multi-Agency Geographic Information for the Countryside’ and is an interactive map managed by Natural England.
The map provides information about the natural environment from across government and it covers rural, urban, coastal and marine environments across Great Britain. The map can be explored using a range of tools and you do not need any specialist applications or software to use it.
Data sets that you can view include mapped designated sites for wildlife (such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Local Nature Reserves), habitat maps, Biodiversity Action Plan priority habitats (such as deciduous woodland, traditional orchard, acid grassland and heathland), European Protected Species Mitigation licences (often obtained for developments which impact protected species such as bats, great crested newts and other protected species) and much more.
There is a video tour of the map and how to use it on the home page.
It is worth noting that MAGIC does not include all designated sites, for example it does not show Local Wildlife Sites and Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINCs). To find maps of these in your area it is best to approach your Local Environmental Records Centre.
iNaturalist UK and iRecord
As well as being data repositories, you can use iNaturalist and iRecord to look at existing records.
On iNaturalist you can use the ‘Explore’ function to search for records of a particular species, or group of species, in your area. You can then view records in a list, grid or on a map. You can filter results by their verification status and by date.
On iRecord you are able to view all records using the ‘Explore’ function. iRecord provide a useful guide to exploring records here. Depending on what you want to find out, you are able to filter the results by species, record verification status, location and other variables.
Other sources of data
There are lots of other open access data sources and maps available online, from green infrastructure maps to amphibian and reptile datasets for the UK. Lots of national recording schemes also display their results on interactive maps once the data collection and analyses are complete.
If you are interested in a particular species group or habitat in your local area, use a search engine to have a browse online. However, the best place to go for local environmental data is your Local Environmental Records Centre. If you cannot find what you need online, get in touch with your local records centre and ask them what data they have, or can signpost you to, to help with your query.
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What are Local Environmental Records Centres and how can you get involved with them?
How LERCs collect and manage the data on the wildlife and geology in your area and how you can get involved.
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Getting started with wildlife monitoring
Learn how to record wildlife in your local area. Find survey methods, identification guides and a survey calendar for each season.
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Nature Recording Hub
Discover how to record and share your wildlife observations. Learn from experts, join UK monitoring schemes and contribute to biodiversity research.
