Sites Module
Locality Tab
Enter all available information from the specimen label into the appropriate field. If you cannot deduce the geographical hierarchy from a label (i.e. if county not provided, handwritten, etc.), place that information into the Precise Location field. Continent, Country, and Province/State/Territory fields are up-to-date and have been locked. This means that the lookup lists for those fields cannot be added to or edited. If you do not see a choice in one of those fields, it likely means the information on the label is outdated or incorrect, but please still include this information in the Precise Location field. Remember to include elevation if provided by the collector, and Township, Range, and Section (TRS) values in the Locality Details section, ensuring "T", "R", and "S" are included in front of the value/direction (i.e. T10S, R23E, S12). If you have any questions about how to properly input information into a sites record, please contact Liz at egjieli@nybg.org.
Example of a completed Locality tab of a Sites record.
Lat/Long Tab
Coordinates provided on label:
If coordinates are provided in decimal degrees (-22.00, -42.05) or degrees minutes seconds (22° 00' S, 42° 03' W), input in Latitude/Longitude Details in the designated area. EMu automatically converts between the two formats, so either is acceptable. If coordinates are provided in Township Range Section format (Public Land Survey System), please enter in the “Locality Details (cont.)” section in the Locality Tab, right hand side; this information can be translated into decimal degrees using a coordinate converter calculator at a later time, if need be. If UTM coordinates are provided, please note in Precise Location notes; this can also be later translated using a UTM coordinate converter tool. This information can be additionally noted in the Mapping Tab, but it is more important to note in the Precise Location field for georeferencing purposes.
Example of a completed sites record when coordinates are provided on a specimen label.
Georeferenced information:
For the following fields, please do your best to use one of the items listed in the drop-down list for each field rather than writing in a new term. If you are unsure, please contact egjieli@nybg.org.
Determination Source: Source of the coordinates, or tools used by the georeferencer to locate the collection site. This includes Google Maps, Google Earth, GeoLocate, MaNIS Georeferencing Calculator, paper maps, gazetteer, etc. (“A list (concatenated and separated) of maps, gazetteers, or other resources used to georeference the Location, described specifically enough to allow anyone in the future to use the same resources” – Georeferencing Quick Reference Guide). This is where you should note coordinates came from specimen label (“Label”) if that was the case.
Determination Method: Protocols to determine coordinates.List the georeferencing protocols followed; this is normally a reference guide (Georeferencing Quick Reference Guide, Biogeomancer Guide to Best Practices for Georeferencing) or an online coordinate conversion tool if coordinates were provided on the label in a format other than decimal degree or degrees minutes seconds. “Other collections” can also be used, which signifies that another collector had collected from the same (or very similar) locality and provided coordinates for that collection. “GPS” can also be noted here. (“A description or reference to the methods used to determine the spatial footprint, coordinates, and uncertainties. If following the protocol in this guide, use “Georeferencing Quick Reference Guide Version… 2012”)
Determined By: georeferencer's name (Parties record)
Determination Date: date (short-cut if today's date, CTRL + ; )
Radius (Numeric): Uncertainty radius, in meters only.
Units: m
Datum: WGS84 (datum used by Google Maps, Google Earth, GeoLocate, Bing Maps, OpenStreetMap, etc.)
Example of a completed georeferenced sites record.
If unable to georeference (unable to find locality or cultivated specimen): Include georeferencer’s name, date, determination method (if applicable), and in the notes field include a short description including why the location is unable to be determined.
