Atlases of the flora and fauna of Britain and Ireland
Encyclopedia
The biodiversity of Great Britain
and Ireland
is probably the most well-studied of any geographical area of comparable size anywhere in the world. This work has resulted in the publication of distribution atlases for many taxonomic groups. This page lists these publications.
A full atlas is generally regarded as a definitive work on distribution, whereas a provisional atlas is typically produced as an interim stage to show survey progress.
One of the bodies responsible for publishing a great number of distribution atlases is the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology. Each atlas presents 10 km² distribution maps for the species within its scope. Maps typically use different symbols to signify records from differing time-periods - solid symbols for 10-km squares (hectads) that have recent records, and unfilled symbols for 10-km squares for which only older records exist, according to a defined cut-off date.
The atlases are produced by the Biological Records Centre
(BRC), which is run by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, part of the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
, formerly based at Monks Wood Experimental Station, Abbots Ripton
, Huntingdonshire
, England
, but now based at CEH Wallingford, Crowmarsh Gifford
, Oxfordshire
. The data used to produce the maps is gathered by volunteer biological recorders and collated by the BRC Recording Schemes.
The atlases fall into two groups:
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
is probably the most well-studied of any geographical area of comparable size anywhere in the world. This work has resulted in the publication of distribution atlases for many taxonomic groups. This page lists these publications.
A full atlas is generally regarded as a definitive work on distribution, whereas a provisional atlas is typically produced as an interim stage to show survey progress.
One of the bodies responsible for publishing a great number of distribution atlases is the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology. Each atlas presents 10 km² distribution maps for the species within its scope. Maps typically use different symbols to signify records from differing time-periods - solid symbols for 10-km squares (hectads) that have recent records, and unfilled symbols for 10-km squares for which only older records exist, according to a defined cut-off date.
The atlases are produced by the Biological Records Centre
Biological Records Centre
The Biological Records Centre is the group responsible for recording and keeping records on fresh water and terrestrial species in the UK...
(BRC), which is run by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, part of the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
The Centre for Ecology & Hydrology is the United Kingdom's Centre of Excellence for integrated research in hydrology, terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems and their interaction with the atmosphere...
, formerly based at Monks Wood Experimental Station, Abbots Ripton
Abbots Ripton
Abbots Ripton is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. It is situated five miles north of Huntingdon, on the B1090...
, Huntingdonshire
Huntingdonshire
Huntingdonshire is a local government district of Cambridgeshire, covering the area around Huntingdon. Traditionally it is a county in its own right...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, but now based at CEH Wallingford, Crowmarsh Gifford
Crowmarsh Gifford
Crowmarsh Gifford is a village in the civil parish of Crowmarsh in South Oxfordshire. It is beside the River Thames opposite the market town of Wallingford, the two being linked via Wallingford Bridge...
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
. The data used to produce the maps is gathered by volunteer biological recorders and collated by the BRC Recording Schemes.
The atlases fall into two groups:
- Main Atlases are commercially published books, presenting the current state of knowledge for well-recorded groups. They typically include text information about the species, and other supporting material such as analyses of trends. They are usually produced only where a well-established recording scheme has been in operation for a significant period of time, and the scheme organisers believe that the data represent a comprehensive picture of the distribution of each species.
- Provisional Atlases give recorders an indication of progress and illustrate early results. Some of the later ones are quite detailed and less "provisional" - for example the Hoverfly Atlas, which provides charts of flight-period as well as text, and the Atlas of Aquatic Bugs, which has biological information and identification aids for some of the animals.
Flora
| Taxonomic group | Publication details | Body responsible for survey co-ordination | Full or provisional | Date range for survey data |
| Algae Algae Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many... |
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| Mosses and Liverwort Liverwort Liverwort may refer to either*Marchantiophyta, a division of non-vascular plants*Hepatica, a genus of spring flowersliverworts are part of the bryophytes group and the bryophytes of the PlantaeIn the bryophytres group their are mosses too.... s |
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| Fungi | ||||
| Slime-moulds |
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| Pteridophyte Pteridophyte The pteridophytes are vascular plants that produce neither flowers nor seeds, and are hence called vascular cryptogams. Instead, they reproduce and disperse only via spores. Pteridophytes include horsetails, ferns, club mosses, and quillworts... s (Ferns and alies) |
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as... (ISBN 0-19-851067-5) |
BSBI Botanical Society of the British Isles The Botanical Society of the British Isles is a scientific society for the study of flora, plant distribution and taxonomy relating to Great Britain, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. The society was founded as the Botanical Society of London in 1836... |
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| Flowering plant Flowering plant The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies... s and conifers |
Oxford University Press Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as... (ISBN 0-19-851067-5) |
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Fauna
| Taxonomic group | Taxonomic sub-group | Publication details | Body responsible for survey co-ordination | Full or provisional | Date range for survey data |
| Amphibians | See Herpetofauna below | ||||
| Birds | BTO British Trust for Ornithology The British Trust for Ornithology is an organisation founded in 1932 for the study of birds in the British Isles.-Activities:The BTO carries out research into the lives of birds, chiefly by conducting population and breeding surveys and by bird ringing, largely carried out by a large number of... |
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| Centipede Centipede Centipedes are arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda of the subphylum Myriapoda. They are elongated metameric animals with one pair of legs per body segment. Despite the name, centipedes can have a varying number of legs from under 20 to over 300. Centipedes have an odd number of pairs of... s |
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| Herpetofauna |
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| Annelid Annelid The annelids , formally called Annelida , are a large phylum of segmented worms, with over 17,000 modern species including ragworms, earthworms and leeches... s |
Leech Leech Leeches are segmented worms that belong to the phylum Annelida and comprise the subclass Hirudinea. Like other oligochaetes such as earthworms, leeches share a clitellum and are hermaphrodites. Nevertheless, they differ from other oligochaetes in significant ways... s |
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| Arachnida | Harvest-spiders |
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| Spider Spider Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms... s |
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| Insect Insect Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae... s |
Beetle Beetle Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms... s |
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| Bug Bug A bug is an insect of the order Hemiptera, known as the "true bugs".Bug or BUG may also refer to:-Biology:* Informally, most arthropods, except marine crustaceans, including individuals or species of** centipede** insect** millipede** mite... s |
Hemiptera Hemiptera is an order of insects most often known as the true bugs , comprising around 50,000–80,000 species of cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, shield bugs, and others... , Heteroptera Heteroptera Heteroptera is a group of about 40,000 species of insects in the Hemiptera. Sometimes called "true bugs", that name more commonly refers to Hemiptera as a whole, and "typical bugs" might be used as a more unequivocal alternative since among the Hemiptera the heteropterans are most consistently and... ). |
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| Butterflies Lepidoptera Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies... |
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Butterfly Conservation Butterfly Conservation Butterfly Conservation is an insect conservation organisation in the United Kingdom. It is one of the largest insect conservation organisations in the world.-History of the Organisation:... ITE |
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| Caddissflies Trichoptera The caddisflies are an order, Trichoptera, of insects with approximately 12,000 described species. Also called sedge-flies or rail-flies, they are small moth-like insects having two pairs of hairy membranous wings... |
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| Dragonflies & damselflies Dragonfly A dragonfly is a winged insect belonging to the order Odonata, the suborder Epiprocta or, in the strict sense, the infraorder Anisoptera . It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body... |
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| Earwig Earwig Earwigs make up the insect order Dermaptera, found throughout the Americas, Africa, Eurasia, Australia and New Zealand. With 1,800 species in 12 families, they are one of the smaller insect orders... s |
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| Flea Flea Flea is the common name for insects of the order Siphonaptera which are wingless insects with mouthparts adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood... s |
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| True flies Diptera Diptera , or true flies, is the order of insects possessing only a single pair of wings on the mesothorax; the metathorax bears a pair of drumstick like structures called the halteres, the remnants of the hind wings. It is a large order, containing an estimated 240,000 species, although under half... |
Tipulinae Tipulinae is a subfamily of crane flies. It contains the typical crane flies from the genus Tipula.-Genera:*Acracantha Skuse, 1890*Angarotipula Savchenko, 1961*Austrotipula Alexander, 1920*Brachypremna Osten Sacken, 1887... ) of Britain and Ireland Hoverfly Hoverflies, sometimes called flower flies or syrphid flies, make up the insect family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed mainly on nectar and pollen, while the larvae eat a wide range of foods... (Diptera, Syrphidae). Brachycera Brachycera is a suborder of Diptera. It is a major suborder consisting of around 120 families. The most distinguishing characteristic of the suborder is reduced antenna segmentation... (Diptera) of Britain and Ireland Dixidae The Dixidae are a family of aquatic nematoceran Diptera. The larvae live in unpolluted, standing fresh waters, just beneath the surface film, usually amongst marginal aquatic vegetation .-External links:* Family description and image.... in Great Britain and Ireland Sepsidae Sepsidae are a family of flies, commonly called the black scavenger flies or ensign flies. There are approximately 250 species worldwide. They are usually found around dung or decaying plant and animal material. Many species resemble ants having a "waist" and glossy black body... (Diptera) of the British Isles. Ptychopteridae Ptychopteridae, the phantom crane flies, is a small family of nematocerous Diptera. Superficially similar in appearance to other "tipuloid" families, they lack the ocelli of Trichoceridae, the 5-branched radial vein of Tanyderidae, and the two anal veins that reach the wing margin of Tipulidae... ) of Britain and Ireland |
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| Grasshopper Grasshopper The grasshopper is an insect of the suborder Caelifera in the order Orthoptera. To distinguish it from bush crickets or katydids, it is sometimes referred to as the short-horned grasshopper... s, cricket Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the... s & allies |
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| Hymenoptera Hymenoptera Hymenoptera is one of the largest orders of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees and ants. There are over 130,000 recognized species, with many more remaining to be described. The name refers to the heavy wings of the insects, and is derived from the Ancient Greek ὑμήν : membrane and... |
Bumblebee A bumble bee is any member of the bee genus Bombus, in the family Apidae. There are over 250 known species, existing primarily in the Northern Hemisphere although they are common in New Zealand and in the Australian state of Tasmania.Bumble bees are social insects that are characterised by black... s of the British Isles |
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| Lacewings and allies, |
Neuroptera The insect order Neuroptera, or net-winged insects, includes the lacewings, mantidflies, antlions, and their relatives. The order contains some 6,010 species... , Megaloptera Megaloptera Megaloptera is an order of insects. It contains the alderflies, dobsonflies and fishflies, and there are about 300 known species.The Megaloptera were formerly considered part of a group then called Neuroptera, together with lacewings and snakeflies, but these are now generally considered to be... , Rhaphidioptera and Mecoptera Mecoptera Mecoptera are an order of insects with about 550 species in nine families worldwide. Mecoptera are sometimes called scorpionflies after their largest family, Panorpidae, in which the males have enlarged genitals that look similar to the stinger of a scorpion... ) of Britain and Ireland |
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| Mammal Mammal Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young... s |
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| Millipede Millipede Millipedes are arthropods that have two pairs of legs per segment . Each segment that has two pairs of legs is a result of two single segments fused together as one... s |
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| Nematode Nematode The nematodes or roundworms are the most diverse phylum of pseudocoelomates, and one of the most diverse of all animals. Nematode species are very difficult to distinguish; over 28,000 have been described, of which over 16,000 are parasitic. It has been estimated that the total number of nematode... s |
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| Reptiles | See Herpetofauna above | ||||
| Tick Tick Ticks are small arachnids in the order Ixodida, along with mites, constitute the subclass Acarina. Ticks are ectoparasites , living by hematophagy on the blood of mammals, birds, and sometimes reptiles and amphibians... s |
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