Identifiers for scientific taxon names
Contents
Algaebase
Covers: Algae
Name-ID / attribute name: yes, numeric / species-ID (for names ranked species and below, for genera and above "#" + numeric)
Example:
https://www.algaebase.org/search/species/detail/?species_id=194111
https://www.algaebase.org/browse/taxonomy/#86701
Synonym ID directly resolves to: Name
Stability: Not stated (but apparently stable at least since 2014)
Policy on orthographic changes: Not stated
Australian Plant Name Index
Covers: Plant names (vascular plants and mosses)
Name-ID / attribute name: yes, numeric
Example: https://id.biodiversity.org.au/name/apni/102507
Synonym ID directly resolves to: Name (n/a: APNI is a nomenclator)
Stability: Not stated, but presumed
Policy on orthographic changes: Not stated but some names with IDs deprecated
Catalogue of Life
Covers: All organisms
Name-ID / attribute name: yes, alphanumeric / COL Stable Identifier
Example: https://www.catalogueoflife.org/data/taxon/4HQ39
Synonym ID directly resolves to: Accepted name
Stability: Stable since March 2022 (nomenclatural author corrections possible)
Policy on orthographic changes: See blog post - information page in preparation (MD, pers. comm. June 2025)
Checklist Bank (GBIF & Catalogue of Life)
Covers: All organisms
Name-ID / attribute name: n/a (repository of datasets - IDs may be cited from contributed dataset)
Global Names Index (GNI)
Covers: All organism names
Name-ID / attribute name: yes / GNI namebankID
Example:'
Synonym ID directly resolves to: Taxon
Stability:
Policy on orthographic changes:
Index Fungorum
Covers: Fungal names (incl. lichens)
Name-ID / attribute name: Yes, numerical
Example: http://www.indexfungorum.org/Names/NamesRecord.asp?RecordID=550000
Synonym ID directly resolves to: Name
Stability: Apparently stable, links to mandatory registration for recent names
Policy on orthographic changes: Not stated
International Plant Name Index IPNI
Covers: Vascular plant names
Name ID / attribute name: yes, LSID*
Example: https://ipni.org/n/77108241-1
Synonym ID directly resolves to: n/a
Stability: Stable but records may be deprecated and inaccessible. Duplicates exist but are linked to each other.
Policy on orthographic changes: Not stated, but orthographic corrections are made
TROPICOS
Covers: Plants (vascular plants and mosses)
Example:'
Synonym ID directly resolves to: Taxon
Stability:
Policy on orthographic changes:
World Flora Online WFO
Covers: Plants (vascular plants and mosses)
Stability: Apparently stable
Policy on orthographic changes: Variants of the canonical name normally receive a new WFO-ID; see https://biss.pensoft.net/article/111210/, no ID is ever deleted https://list.worldfloraonline.org/index.php under Identifiers
==World Register of Marine Organisms WoRMS
Covers: Marine organisms
Name ID / attribute name: yes, numeric / AphiaID
Example:
Synonym ID directly resolves to: Taxon
Stability:
Policy on orthographic changes:
Zoobank
Covers: Zoological names and nomenclatural acts
Name ID / attribute name: yes, LSID*
Example:
Synonym ID directly resolves to: n/a
Stability: Linked to ICZN registration.
Policy on orthographic changes: Not stated, but practices may vary for later changes
Footnotes
- LSID: The IPNI LSID (Life Science Identifier) is a unique identifier used to represent scientific names of plants in the International Plant Names Index (IPNI). The LSID is a standardized format for representing these names and their associated data in a machine-readable way. An LSID consists of several parts, including a prefix that identifies the issuing authority (in this case, IPNI), a namespace that identifies the type of data (usually "names"), and a unique identifier for the specific record. For example, a typical IPNI LSID might look something like this: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:77108241-1. In this LSID, "ipni.org" is the domain of the issuing authority (IPNI), "names" indicates that it's a record for a plant name, and "77108241-1" is the unique identifier for that specific record. (Source: ChatGPT GPT3.5 "IPNI LSID" - accessed 7 nov 2023)
