Help
This section briefly explains some of the main functions provided by Biota of New Zealand.
Main functions
Search
Biota of New Zealand provides two search modes that can be selected directly under the search box. These modes are:
- All data - searches across all fields without restriction.
- Associations - searches across all fields but limits the records to those that contain information on biological associations.
Both search modes provide the ability to find records using simple term searches (e.g., for a word) or more complex field and syntax searches.
A simple search will search for any words provided across all fields and return records that contain those words within the record content.
A more complex search can be defined to limit a search to specific fields as well as allowing for ranges, negative and other more complex searches. Please refer to Search syntax for more details on the fields and syntax options that are available.
Results
Search results are presented in a list that is formatted depending on the search mode (all data or association). There are different options for sorting the results depending on the mode chosen.
Records can be selected for download using the checkbox to the left of each result.
Filters
Groups of filters appear once a search has been completed. Click on a value within a filter to apply that value to the search results as a filter. Once a filter has been applied it will be listed in the Selected filters section which can be found above the Filters list. Clicking on the applied filter in the Selected filters section will clear that filter from the current search.
Filters are applied one at a time. It is possible to apply more than one value from the same filter.
Share
Share provides a quick way for obtaining a URL that you can copy for the search result or record page you are currently viewing. This may be convenient if you would like to save a link to the page, or share it with someone else.
Download
Biota of NZ provides the ability to download data from the search results or an individual record. Depending on the type of record(s) you are viewing there are different data standards and formats available. See the Data download page for more details.
Cite
Clicking on the Cite icon provides text that you can copy and paste if you would like to cite a particular page. For details on how to cite the whole website please see Terms of use.
Information icons
The following set of icons provide information about a record in the search results and/or details pages.
| Record class | |
|---|---|
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Reference |
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Scientific name |
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Vernacular name |
| Record content | |
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Biological associations |
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Has collections |
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Has descriptions |
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Has identification keys |
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Has images |
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NZ relevant |
| Record source | |
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Ngā Harore o Aotearoa – New Zealand Fungi and Bacteria (Names_Fungi) |
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Ko te Aitanga Pepeke o Aotearoa – New Zealand Land Invertebrates (Names_NZAC) |
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Ngā Tipu o Aotearoa – New Zealand Plants Names Database (Names_Plants) |
| Management status | |
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Pest |
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Weed |
| Origin | |
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Indigenous |
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Exotic |
| Taxonomic status | |
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Preferred name |
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Synonym |
| Threat classification status | |
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Critical |
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Data deficient |
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Declining |
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Endangered |
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Extinct |
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Naturally uncommon |
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Not threatened |
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Recovering |
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Vulnerable |
Action icons
The following set of icons provide access to different functions within the site:
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Cite |
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Download |
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Filter |
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Search |
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Share |
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View help |
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View information |
RSS Feeds
This RSS feed provides notifications about specific updates in taxonomic data. You can filter notifications by category, making it possible to subscribe to updates relevant to specific taxa, change types, or data sources. This guide explains how to subscribe to the feed, filter notifications using parameters, and set up a subscription in Outlook.
Subscribing to the RSS Feed in Outlook
- Open Outlook
- Navigate to Account Settings:
- Go to File > Account Settings > Account Settings.
- Add the RSS Feed:
- Click on the RSS Feeds tab, then New.
- Paste the customised feed URL e.g.,:
- https://feeds.landcareresearch.co.nz/feed?host=biotanz.landcareresearch.co.nz/&categories=insecta&categories=new-name&categories=names_nzac
- You can find instructions about how to create a customised feed further down the page
- Click Add and then OK.
Outlook will now periodically check the feed and update it in your RSS Feeds folder, showing only the notifications matching your specified categories. This approach allows users to tailor notifications to specific taxonomic changes, ensuring they stay updated on relevant classifications or data changes.
RSS Feed Subscription Setup
Basic Feed URL
The basic feed endpoint is:
https://feeds.landcareresearch.co.nz/feed?host=biotanz.landcareresearch.co.nz
Without parameters, this URL will return all notifications from Biota of New Zealand
Categories
The feed provides three classes of category that can be used to filter the messages received from the feed. These classes are:
- document-source e.g. names_fungi, names_nzac or names_plants
- notification-type
- major taxonomic ranks e.g. kingdom, phylum, class or order
Filtering with Categories
The RSS feed allows filtering by categories to refine notifications. You can query the following endpoints to explore available category terms:
- Document Sources: https://feeds.landcareresearch.co.nz/vocabulary/document-source - List of sources of the documents.
- Notification Types: https://feeds.landcareresearch.co.nz/vocabulary/notification-type - List of available notification types.
- Taxonomic ranks - the Biota of New Zealand website can be used to find the appropriate values to filter by a taxonomic rank. For example, if you want to filter to a particular Class
- find the names at the rank of Class in Biota of New Zealand: https://biotanz.landcareresearch.co.nz/search?query=*&searchType=all&facets=taxonRank:%22class%22
- in the search results find the class you are interested in the search list and copy the scientific name without the authors
- use that name as the category value as shown below.
Subscribing with Category Filters
The feed can be customised using the categories query parameter with an AND logic. This means that if you include multiple categories parameters, only notifications matching all specified conditions will be included in the results.
Example Subscription
To receive only notifications from a specific document source e.g. Fungi and Bacteria Names, Invertebrate Names or Plant Names, you can use the following queries:
- Ngā Harore o Aotearoa – New Zealand Fungi and Bacteria (Names_Fungi)
- https://feeds.landcareresearch.co.nz/feed?host=biotanz.landcareresearch.co.nz&categories=names_fungi
- Ko te Aitanga Pepeke o Aotearoa – New Zealand Land Invertebrates (Names_NZAC)
- https://feeds.landcareresearch.co.nz/feed?host=biotanz.landcareresearch.co.nz&categories=names_nzac
- Ngā Tipu o Aotearoa – New Zealand Plants Names Database (Names_Plants)
- https://feeds.landcareresearch.co.nz/feed?host=biotanz.landcareresearch.co.nz&categories=names_plants
To receive only notifications for specific taxonomic updates (e.g., changes related to a class and type), you can use a query with multiple categories parameters:
https://feeds.landcareresearch.co.nz/feed?host=biotanz.landcareresearch.co.nz/&categories=insecta&categories=new-name&categories=names_nzac
In this example:
- categories=insecta: Limits notifications to items with the taxonomic class “Insecta".
- categories=new-name: Ensures results pertain specifically to the “New Name" notification type.
- categories=names_nzac: Filters for changes originated from “Names_NZAC" document source.
