Occurrence

Florabank1 - A grid-based database on vascular plant distribution in the northern part of Belgium (Flanders and the Brussels Capital region)

Latest version published by Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) on 1 January 2024 Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
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Publication date:
1 January 2024
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Download the latest version of this resource data as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A) or the resource metadata as EML or RTF:

Data as a DwC-A file download 5,265,660 records in English (221 MB) - Update frequency: biannually
Metadata as an EML file download in English (110 KB)
Metadata as an RTF file download in English (27 KB)

Description

Florabank1 is a database that contains distributional data on the wild flora (indigenous species, archeophytes and naturalised aliens) of Flanders and the Brussels Capital Region. It holds about 3 million records of vascular plants, dating from 1800 till present. Furthermore, it includes ecological data on vascular plant species, redlist category information, Ellenberg values, legal status, global distribution, seed bank etc. The database is an initiative of "Flo.Wer" (http://www.plantenwerkgroep.be), the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) (http://www.inbo.be) and the National Botanic Garden of Belgium (http://www.br.fgov.be). Florabank aims at centralizing botanical distribution data gathered by both professional and amateur botanists and to make these data available to the benefit of nature conservation, policy and scientific research. The occurrence data contained in Florabank1 are extracted from checklists, literature and herbarium specimen information. Of survey lists, the locality name (verbatimLocality), species name, observation date and IFBL square code - the grid system used for plant mapping in Belgium (Van Rompaey 1943) - are recorded. For records dating from the period 1972–2004 all pertinent botanical journals dealing with Belgian flora were systematically screened. Analysis of herbarium specimens in the collection of the National Botanic Garden of Belgium, the University of Ghent and the University of Liège provided interesting distribution knowledge concerning rare species, this information is also included in Florabank1.

The IFBL data recorded before 1972 is available through the Belgian GBIF node (http://www.gbif.org/dataset/940821c0-3269-11df-855a-b8a03c50a862), not through Florabank1, to avoid duplication of information. A dedicated portal providing access to all currently published Belgian IFBL records is available at: http://projects.biodiversity.be/ifbl.

All data in Florabank1 is georeferenced. Every record holds the decimal centroid coordinates of the > IFBL square containing the observation. The uncertainty radius is the smallest circle possible covering the whole IFBL square, which can measure 1 km² or 4 km². Florabank is a work in progress and new occurrences are added as they become available; the dataset will be updated through GBIF on a regularly base.

Data Records

The data in this occurrence resource has been published as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A), which is a standardized format for sharing biodiversity data as a set of one or more data tables. The core data table contains 5,265,660 records.

This IPT archives the data and thus serves as the data repository. The data and resource metadata are available for download in the downloads section. The versions table lists other versions of the resource that have been made publicly available and allows tracking changes made to the resource over time.

Versions

The table below shows only published versions of the resource that are publicly accessible.

How to cite

Researchers should cite this work as follows:

Van Landuyt W, Vanhecke L, Brosens D (2011) Florabank 1: a grid-based database on vascular plant distribution in the northern part of Belgium (Flanders and the Brussels Capital region). PhytoKeys 12: 59–67. https://doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.12.2849

Rights

Researchers should respect the following rights statement:

The publisher and rights holder of this work is Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). To the extent possible under law, the publisher has waived all rights to these data and has dedicated them to the Public Domain (CC0 1.0). Users may copy, modify, distribute and use the work, including for commercial purposes, without restriction.

GBIF Registration

This resource has been registered with GBIF, and assigned the following GBIF UUID: 271c444f-f8d8-4986-b748-e7367755c0c1.  Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) publishes this resource, and is itself registered in GBIF as a data publisher endorsed by Belgian Biodiversity Platform.

Keywords

Occurrence; Observation; Tracheophyta; grid mapping; flora; indigenous species; archeophytes; naturalised aliens; Occurrence

External data

The resource data is also available in other formats

IFBL data portal http://projects.biodiversity.be/ifbl UTF-8 various formats

Contacts

Wouter Van Landuyt
  • Owner
  • Originator
  • Point Of Contact
Researcher
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
Kliniekstraat 25
1070 Brussels
Brussels Capital Region
BE
Dimitri Brosens
  • Metadata Provider
  • Processor
Data liaison officer
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
Kliniekstraat 25
1070 Brussels
Brussels Capital Region
BE
Leo Vanhecke
  • Author
Researcher
National Botanic Garden Belgium (NBGB)
Bouchout Domain, Nieuwelaan 38
1860 Meise
Flemish Brabant
BE

Geographic Coverage

Florabank deals with distribution data of the wild flora of Flanders and the Brussels Capital Region (Federal states of the Kingdom of Belgium). Florabank covers an area of 13.682 km². Flanders has a temperate maritime climate influenced by the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, with relatively moderate summers and mild winters. Flanders is the northern part of Belgium. The two main geographical regions of Flanders are the Yser basin, in the North-West and the central plain. Flanders is divided in 6 ecoregions (Dunes district; Kempens district; Loam district; River Maas; Polder district, Sand and Loam district). The Brussels Capital region is a small region (162 km²) surrounded Flanders and is entirely situated in the Loam district. The majority of this region is highly urbanized and only the southern part is occupied by a large beech forest.

Bounding Coordinates South West [50.68, 2.54], North East [51.51, 5.92]

Taxonomic Coverage

The coverage of this database spans the Phylum Tracheophyta or vascular plants. The highest number of records are from the Magnoliopsida (76.48%) followed by Monocotyledones (20.92%), Filicopsida (1.44%), Sphenopsida (0.97%) Coniferopsida (0.13%) and Lycopsida (0.03%). Ginkgopsids are within the scope of Florabank, but do not occur within the geographical scope of the database.

Phylum Tracheophytes (vascular plants)
Class Coniferopsida, Filicopsida, Ginkgopsida, Liliopsida, Lycopsida, Magnoliopsida, Sphenopsida
Order Sapindales, Sarraceniales, Saxifragales, Scrophulariales, Theales, Thymelaeales, Urticales, Violales, Gymnospermae, Equisetales, Pinales, Taxales, Filicales, Marsileales, Ophioglossales, Osmundales, Salviniales, Ginkgoales, Alismatales, Arales, Commelinales, Cyperales, Hydrocharitales, Juncales, Liliales, Najadales, Orchidales, Poales, Pontederiales, Typhales, Typhales, Zingiberales, Isoetales, Lycopodiales, Selaginellales, Apiales, Aristolochiales, Asterales, Callitrichales, Campanulales, Capparales, Caryophyllales, Celastrales, Cornales, Cucurbitales, Dipsacales, Elaeagnales, Ericales, Euphorbiales, Fabales, Gentianales, Geraniales, Haloragales, Haloragales, Hamamelidales, Juglandales, Lamiales, Linales, Loganiales, Magnoliales, Malvales, Myricales, Myrtales, Nymphaeales, Oleales, Paeoniales, Papaverales, Piperales, Plantaginales, Plumbaginales, Polemoniales, Polygalales, Polygonales, Primulales, Ranunculales, Rhamnales, Rosales, Rubiales, Rutales, Salicales, Santalales
Family Araucariaceae, Cupressaceae, Pinaceae, Taxodiaceae, Taxaceae, Adiantaceae, Aspleniaceae, Blechnaceae, Dennstaedtiaceae, Dryopteridaceae, Hymenophyllaceae, Polypodiaceae, Thelypteridaceae, Woodsiaceae, Marsileaceae, Ophioglossaceae, Osmundaceae, Azollaceae, Salviniaceae, Ginkgoaceae, Alismataceae, Butomaceae, Araceae, Lemnaceae, Commelinaceae, Cyperaceae, Hydrocharitaceae, Juncaceae, Agavaceae, Alliaceae, Amaryllidaceae, Dioscoreaceae, Iridaceae, Liliaceae, Aponogetonaceae, Juncaginaceae, Najadaceae, Potamogetonaceae, Ruppiaceae, Scheuchzeriaceae, Zannichelliaceae, Zosteraceae, Orchidaceae, Poaceae, Pontederiaceae, Sparganiaceae, Typhaceae, Cannaceae, Isoetaceae, Lycopodiaceae, Selaginellaceae, Apiaceae, Araliaceae, Aristolochiaceae, Asteraceae, Callitrichaceae, Campanulaceae, Lobeliaceae, Brassicaceae, Capparaceae, Resedaceae, Aizoaceae, Amaranthaceae, Caryophyllaceae, Chenopodiaceae, Molluginaceae, Nyctaginaceae, Phytolaccaceae, Portulacaceae, Aquifoliaceae, Celastraceae, Cornaceae, Cucurbitaceae, Adoxaceae, Caprifoliaceae, Dipsacaceae, Valerianaceae, Elaeagnaceae, Actinidiaceae, Clethraceae, Empetraceae, Ericaceae, Monotropaceae, Pyrolaceae, Buxaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Caesalpiniaceae, Fabaceae, Betulaceae, Fagaceae, Apocynaceae, Asclepiadaceae, Gentianaceae, Balsaminaceae, Geraniaceae, Limnanthaceae, Oxalidaceae, Tropaeolaceae, Gunneraceae, Haloragaceae, Hippuridaceae, Hamamelidaceae, Platanaceae, Juglandaceae, Boraginaceae, Lamiaceae, Verbenaceae, Linaceae, Buddlejaceae, Calycanthaceae, Magnoliaceae, Malvaceae, Tiliaceae, Myricaceae, Lythraceae, Onagraceae, Trapaceae, Cabombaceae, Ceratophyllaceae, Nymphaeaceae, Oleaceae, Paeoniaceae, Fumariaceae, Papaveraceae, Saururaceae, Plantaginaceae, Plumbaginaceae, Convolvulaceae, Cuscutaceae, Hydrophyllaceae, Menyanthaceae, Polemoniaceae, Solanaceae, Polygalaceae, Polygonaceae, Primulaceae, Berberidaceae, Menispermaceae, Ranunculaceae, Rhamnaceae, Vitaceae, Amygdalaceae, Malaceae, Rosaceae, Rubiaceae, Anacardiaceae, Rutaceae, Simaroubaceae, Zygophyllaceae, Salicaceae, Loranthaceae, Santalaceae, Aceraceae, Hippocastanaceae, Sapindaceae, Staphyleaceae, Droseraceae, Crassulaceae, Grossulariaceae, Hydrangeaceae, Saxifragaceae, Bignoniaceae, Globulariaceae, Lentibulariaceae, Martyniaceae, Orobanchaceae, Pedaliaceae, Scrophulariaceae, Elatinaceae, Hypericaceae, Thymelaeaceae, Cannabaceae, Moraceae, Ulmaceae, Urticaceae, Begoniaceae, Cistaceae, Frankeniaceae, Loasaceae, Passifloraceae, Tamaricaceae, Violaceae, Ephedraceae, Equisetaceae

Temporal Coverage

Living Time Period 1800 - now

Sampling Methods

The spatial coverage of the territory has evolved through time. The data from the period before 1939 pertains mostly to herbarium specimens and reflects only part of the vascular plant composition of the region. From 1939 onwards most observations are collected using a standardized protocol based on the methodology used for the Atlas of the flora of Belgium and Luxemburg (VAN ROMPAEY & DELVOSALLE 1972). The atlas area is covered by a grid of 4 x 4 Km squares, which is further subdivided into 1 x 1 Km squares. All species observed during a visit to a grid cell of 1 km² were recorded without distinguishing between common or rare species. In each 4 x 4 km square, more than one 1 km² squares were surveyed. The inventories dating from the period 1939-1971 fed the Atlas of the flora of Belgium and Luxemburg (VAN ROMPAEY & DELVOSALLE 1972) (figure 2), while those from 1972-2004 served to produce that by VAN LANDUYT et al. (2006) (figure 3). During the first period (figure 2) only one survey of 1km² in each grid of 4 x 4km was required, during the second period we attempted to obtain data from at least four 1 km² grids in each grid of 4x4 km. From 2005 onwards we continued to gather data using the same protocol.

Study Extent The purpose of the Florabank database is the aggregation of occurrences data gathered by volunteers and/or professional botanists in order to make the data available for nature conservation, policy and research.
Quality Control All records are validated.

Method step description:

  1. All records are validated before they are added to Florabank. The basic reference for quality control is the Belgian atlas (VAN ROMPAEY & DELVOSALLE 1972). New data to be entered into the database are first submitted to a preliminary, automatic control. Observations pertaining to common species which were previously validated to occur in the neighbouring grid cells of 4 x 4 km squares over the last 35 years are automatically validated. Observations of species that are considered rare, or common species that have not been recorded in the neighbouring grid cells since 35 years are subjected to a manual control by experts. If the record concerns a location validated by other sources (e.g. recent herbarium specimens, peer reviewed papers) it is validated by the managers of the database, if not the observers can be asked to provide extra proof of their observation (e.g. herbarium specimens or photographs). Once an observation is validated (automatically or by the database manager) it can be considered for the validation of new observations.

Bibliographic Citations

  1. Van Landuyt, W., Vanhecke, L., Hoste, I., & Bauwens, D. (2011) Do the distribution patterns of vascular plant species correspond to biogeographical classifications based on environmental data? A case study from northern Belgium. Landscape and Urban Planning, 99, 93-103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2010.08.020 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2010.08.020
  2. Van Landuyt, W., Hoste, I., & Vanhecke, L. (2007) Evolution générale de la flora de Flandre (Belgique) entre 1939-1971 et 1972-2004: évaluation des changements en tenant compte de l'intensité d'inventaire. L.A.S.E.R., Actes du colloque GEOFLORE 2007, 2007, 119-123.
  3. Hoste, I.; Van Landuyt, W.; Verloove, F. (2006). Landschap en flora in beweging, 19de en 20ste eeuw, in: Van Landuyt, W. et al. (Ed.) (2006). Atlas van de flora van Vlaanderen en het Brussels Gewest. pp. 45-67
  4. Van Landuyt, W. (2009) Measuring invasive speed of alien plant species using data from a general mapping program in the north of Belgium. Book of abstracts, 2nd European Congres of Conservation Biology p. 147. Czech University of Life Sciences, Faculty of Environmental Science.
  5. Vanhecke, L.; Hoste, I. (2006). Met vallen en opstaan: het verhaal van de tweede kartering, 1972-2004, in: Van Landuyt, W. et al. (Ed.) (2006). Atlas van de flora van Vlaanderen en het Brussels Gewest. pp. 14-31
  6. Van Landuyt, W.; de Beer, D. (2009). Planten, in: Beckers, K. et al. (Ed.) (2009). Een gericht natuurbeleid voor de prioritaire soorten in de provincie Antwerpen. pp. 25-64
  7. Van Landuyt, W.; Vanhecke, L.; Hoste, I. (2006). Rode Lijst van de vaatplanten van Vlaanderen en het Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest, in: Van Landuyt, W. et al. (Ed.) (2006). Atlas van de flora van Vlaanderen en het Brussels Gewest. pp. 69-81,
  8. Honnay, O., Piessens, K., Van Landuyt, W., Hermy, M., & Gulinck, H. (2003) Satellite based land use and landscape complexity indices as predictors for regional plant species diversity. Landscape and Urban Planning, 63, 241-250. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-2046(02)00194-9 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-2046(02)00194-9
  9. Van Landuyt, W.; Vanhecke, L.; Hoste, I. (2006). Verzameling en verwerking van de basisgegevens, in: Van Landuyt, W. et al. (Ed.) (2006). Atlas van de flora van Vlaanderen en het Brussels Gewest. pp. 33-42
  10. Louette, G., Adriaens, D., Adriaens, P., Anselin, A., Devos, K., Sannen, K., Van Landuyt, W., Paelinckx, D., & Hoffmann, M. (2011) Bridging the gap between the Natura 2000 regional conservation status and local conservation objectives. Journal for Nature Conservation, 17 (4), 224-235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnc.2011.02.001 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnc.2011.02.001
  11. Maes, D., Bauwens, D., De Bruyn, L., Anselin, A., Vermeersch, G., Van Landuyt, W., De Knijf, G., & Gilbert, M. (2005) Species richness coincidence: conservation strategies based on predictive modelling. Biodiversity and Conservation, 14, 1345-1364. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-004-9662-x https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-004-9662-x
  12. Schneiders, A., Van Daele, T., Van Landuyt W., & Van Reeth, W. (2011) Biodiversity and ecosystem services: Complementary approaches for ecosystem management? Ecological Indicators. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2011.06.021 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2011.06.021
  13. Van Landuyt, W., Hoste, I., Vanhecke, L., Van den Bremt, P., Vercruysse, E., & De Beer, D. (2006) Atlas van de Flora van Vlaanderen en het Brussels Gewest. Instituut voor natuur- en bosonderzoek, Nationale Plantentuin van België & Flo.Wer, Brussel.
  14. Van Landuyt, W., Vanhecke, L., Hoste, I., Hendrickx, F., & Bauwens, D. (2008) Changes in the distribution area of vascular plants in Flanders (northern Belgium): eutrophication as a major driving force. Biodiversity and Conservation, 17, 3045-3060.

Additional Metadata

To allow anyone to use this dataset, we have released the data to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). We would appreciate however, if you read and follow these norms for data use (http://www.inbo.be/en/norms-for-data-use) and provide a link to the original dataset whenever possible. If you use these data for a scientific paper, please cite the dataset following the applicable citation norms and/or consider us for co-authorship. We are always interested to know how you have used or visualized the data, or to provide more information, so please contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata, opendata@inbo.be or https://twitter.com/LifeWatchINBO. Data pertaining to Brussels with occurrences from 2003-2005 is owned by BIM-IBGE. See: http://www.floraofbrussels.be/floraofbrussels/ for more information.

Purpose The purpose of the Florabank database is the aggregation of occurrences data gathered by volunteers and/or professional botanists in order to make the data available for nature conservation, policy and research.
Alternative Identifiers 271c444f-f8d8-4986-b748-e7367755c0c1
https://ipt.inbo.be/resource?r=florabank1-occurrences