New perspectives for the Annelida collection (National Museum/UFRJ) database: using data visualization to analyze and manage biological collections

Messias, Camila Simões Martins de Aguiar; Fonseca, Carlos Cesar de Oliveira; Santos, Monique Cristina dos; Sá, Asla M.; Zanol, Joana

doi:10.1590/2675-2824072.23102

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Ocean and Coastal Research

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ORIGINAL ARTICLE • Ocean Coast. Res. 72 (suppl 1) • 2024 • https://doi.org/10.1590/2675-2824072.23102 copy

New perspectives for the Annelida collection (National Museum/UFRJ) database: using data visualization to analyze and manage biological collections

Authorship SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

ABSTRACT

Collection management faces many challenges in keeping stored items preserved and the information associated with them accurate and organized. It is essential for the expansion and use of this biodiversity repository that the database is unambiguous and that errors are quickly identified and corrected. This work aims to show the use of interactive visual representations (IVRs) of the collection’s metadata as tools to inspect the data and help solve these challenges. To do this, we used the Annelida collection database from the National Museum (MN) of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). Interactive graphs of the metadata within this database (catalog date, taxonomic identification and determiners, sampling, depth, geographic localization, and collector data) were created with the Altair library in the Python 3 language. Data analyses using these graphs made it possible to identify anomalous patterns in the data and fill in missing records. They also provided an understanding of the spatial and bathymetric distribution of the specimens deposited over time, and the growth rate of the collection in each family, thus projecting future growth and solutions for the physical organization of vials. Graphs are an ally in the management of collections with digital entry forms and aim to facilitate the availability of metadata associated with cataloged specimens. Likewise, IVRs can even be used to give credit to the researchers involved in building biological collections. Thus, visualization tools are efficient in recognizing global patterns present in databases and solving biological collection management tasks.

Keywords:
Polychaetes; Biological collection; Management; Interactive visual representations

Interactive Visual Representation (IVR) used	Anomalous Patterns Identified	Verification/Correction Approach
Geographic distribution of species cataloged and dynamic version geographic distributions x sampling year (Figs. 2 and S1).	Dates	Search for the original information in academic papers and reports regarding the deposited specimen.
Types per Family x Cataloged Year (Fig. 3).	(i) Catalog dates prior to the opening date of the collection.	Correlation with the collection’s opening year.
Author x Cataloged Year (Fig. 3).	(ii) Use of the same value for the fields collection, determination, and catalog dates.	Inquiry of former employees, collectors, and researchers.
Depth x Family, observing details in tooltips (Fig. 4B).	(iii) Sampling dates of expeditions differing from scientific documents.	Correlation with the period formers employees were responsible for the collection.
Collector x Sampling Year (Fig. 5).	(iv) Determination, cataloged or sampling dates in a period inconsistent with the researcher’s age or the moment of his scientific production.	Correlation with the collection date of other specimens from the same study or field trip.
Identified by x Cataloged Year (Fig. 6).
Family x Cataloged Year (Fig. 7).
All IVRs were useful because their elements such as legends, tooltips and words on the x and y axes could be analyzed.	Spelling	Consultation of species databases for the correct spelling of taxon names.
	(i) Misspelling in the taxonomic classification.
	(ii) Different ways to write the name of the same researcher, collector, employee, or trip.	Standardizing the way of writing people and trip names.
	(iii) Typos in general.	Standardizing the way of writing people and trip names.
Geographic distribution of species cataloged interactive version with sampling year (Figs. 2, S1, S2 and S3).	Spatial	Search for the original information in academic papers and reports regarding the deposited specimen.
Family x Depth interactive version with minimum and maximum depth (Fig. 4 and S4).	(i) Geospatial coordinates or name of the location do not correspond to where the specimen was collected.	Standardizing the way of estimating geographic coordinates, when only the name of the occurrence locality is available, and to include observation about this type of approach in the database.
	(ii) Minimum and maximum depths do not cover expedition information or previously documented distribution for the taxon.
All IVRs had their elements such as legends, tooltips and words on the x and y axes analyzed.	Lack of information	Search for the original information in academic papers and reports regarding the deposited specimen.
	(i) Incomplete record in fields of the database.	Inquiry of former employees, collectors, and researchers.
		Verification of specimen labels in the collection.

Instituto Oceanográfico da Universidade de São Paulo Praça do Oceanográfico 191, CEP: 05508-120, São Paulo, SP - Brasil, Tel.: (11) 3091-6501 - São Paulo - SP - Brazil
E-mail: diretoria.io@usp.br

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[1] * Corresponding author: camila.messias@mn.ufrj.br