Case studies

Objectives

In this case study, the B-Cubed workflows will be tested for Flanders, a region of Europe where species occurrence data are abundant.

The implemented indicators can be subdivided into:

• General biodiversity indicators (based on b3gbi, for instance, cumulative species richness, relative species richness, etc.);
• Phylogenetic indicators (based on pdindicatoR);
• Invasive Alien Species indicators (based on impIndicator) but extended with additional indicators necessary for reporting (e.g. rate of establishment, proportion of non-native species, comparison of species occupancy between periods, TrIAS indicators);
• Extra indicators that are used for IAS reporting might be added to the list, based on stakeholder needs.
  
  

Extra attention will be given to a comparison between Natura 2000 versus non-Natura 2000 habitats when applying these indicators, calculation and interpretation of indicator uncertainty, and taking into account survey effort.

B-Cubed partners involved: 

• Lead: INBO;
• Partners: MeiseBG, PENSOFT

Contacts: Jasmijn Hillaert and Lissa Breugelmans

Main expected outcomes

• The selected indicators will be made available through a public dashboard that can serve as inspiration for other dashboards (e.g., the alien species portal, the Flemish biodiversity portal, and the Belgium GBIF node);
• We will maintain close contact with other dashboard maintainers to ensure interoperability, for instance, by providing all code in an R package.
  
  

Objectives

Information on indicators will help address three of the six identified key gaps in the last status report (SANBI and CIB, 2020) on invasive alien species. These include:

• Alignment of indicators;
• Mobilisation of spatial data; 
• Mobilisation of impact data.
  
  

B-Cubed partners involved: 

• Lead: SANBI;
• Partners: SUN, JLUG, MeiseBG, GBIF, PENSOFT

Contacts: Tsungai Zengeya, John Wilson, Katelyn Faulkner, Promise Mtileni 

Main expected outcomes

• Revised indicator fact sheets bringing the South Africa national indicator framework for biological invasions more closely aligned with international reporting requirements;

• Automation and standardisation of the process for species and site indicators that require spatial data (e.g., workflows);
• Key graphical outputs of the report.
  
  

Objectives

• To establish a workflow that promotes the integration of data reported in the scope of the Habitat Directive with data from other sources, in particular GBIF, but also other biodiversity platforms;
• To improve the reproducibility and consistency of biodiversity data reported by member states (enabling automated bottom-up reporting) and the EEA;
• To optimise monitoring by incorporating data from sources such as GBIF, thus increasing coverage and robustness of the assessments;
• To support large-scale trend assessments and integration of national-level reports within relevant biogeographical regions (supporting top-down evaluation of compliance and consistency);
• To contribute to data mobilisation in FAIR format.
  
  

B-Cubed partners involved: 

• Lead: UAVR;
• Partners: MeiseBG, GBIF, MLU, UOC, PENSOFT, JLUG, LTU

Contacts: Luísa Machado and Heliana Teixeira

Main expected outcomes

• Case study IV is expected to increase stakeholders’ confidence and literacy regarding the integration of data hosted by the Global Biodiversity Information Platform GBIF;
• Facilitate national reporting obligations;
• Development of tools to evaluate the effectiveness of Natura 2000 sites across Europe;
• Improved mobilisation and accessibility of biodiversity data into FAIR-compliant formats.

Objectives

• Gathering species occurrence data at Ramsar sites from GBIF (note: this is tricky as Ramsar sites are numerous (over 2,500 sites), generally small in size and distributed worldwide (across 172 countries), directly assessing data for specific sites seems challenging due to technical problems or other issues);
• Testing code and metrics developed in WP5 for Ramsar sites on selected taxonomic groups (e.g., wading birds);
• Exploring status and trends of biodiversity at Ramsar sites;
• Exploring the feasibility of calculating biodiversity trends with sites of varying area sizes, data availability and location worldwide;
• Understanding the sensitivity of trends to spatial uncertainty;
• Comparing biodiversity trends in Ramsar sites across regions.
  
  

B-Cubed partners involved: 

• Lead: JLUG;
• Partners: MeiseBG, MLU, PENSOFT 

Contacts: Shawn Dove and Hanno Seebens

Main expected outcomes

• Insights about the feasibility of applying the workflows for calculating metrics of biodiversity to sites of varying size and data availability;
• Insights into the variation of data availability across regions;
• A comparative analysis of biodiversity status and trends across Ramsar sites and regions.