Mikrotax Introduction

mikrotax.org - a system for web-delivery of taxonomy

Introduction

The mikrotax.org website currently hosts two main databases - Nannotax and pforams@mikrotax sharing the same system but with separate identities. We are interested to collaborate in development of other web-databases using the system,, and are currently working on systems for depp-sea benthic foraminifera, Cenozoic radiolaria and for acritarchs.

Nannotax is a website which has been developed over several years, by Jeremy Young with Paul Bown, Richard Howe and Jackie Lees, in order to allow online documentation of the taxonomy of modern coccolithophores and calcareous nannofossils. To achieve this, and especially to make an interface that worked the way we wanted it to, we found we had to write a new web application (based on php, mySQL and Javascript). This has been a major project but it is suitable for application to other groups.

With the help of funding from the UK NERC we have now applied the same system to create the pforams@mikrotax website, this project is lead by Bridget Wade, Brian Huber, Paul Bown and Jeremy Young. The content is primarily based on the work of various planktonic foraminifera taxonomic working groups. As part of this project we have further developed the system so that site development can be entirely carried out via web-interfaces.

Acritax is our newest development, dealing with Acritarchs, a mostly Palaeozoic microplankton group. This website being developed by Brian Pedder assisted by Jeremy Young. It currently provides access to a colossal card index of data on acritarchs compiled by John Williams and it is intended to develop it as a broader database of information on Acritarchs.

Why mikrotax?

We liked the name microtax but the domain name had already been used by tax avoidance companies. By spelling it with a 'k' we made a unique name, which is very helpful for web searches. Also, mikro is the logical spelling in many languages.

Distinctive features of the mikrotax system

Possible applications

The feature set of the system was designed for handling microfossil taxonomy, in which there is a rather large number of taxa with relatively limited amounts of data per taxon, where images are of central importance to practical use, and where statigraphic range data is of critical interest. It should be suitable for other groups with similar priorities. If you are interested in either helping with our current projects or developing new applications please contact Jeremy Young

People Behind the Project

As the mikrotax project has expanded it has become increasingly important to involve more people in oversight, governance and promotion. We now have the following executive and advisory boards, providing a wide range of expertise. The executive board has responsibility for oversight of the project as a whole, whilst the advisory boards assist with development and promotion of the planktonic foraminiferal and nannoplankton sites.

Executive Board

mugshot
Haydon Bailey
Network Stratigraphic, UK
mugshot
Paul R. Bown
University College London, UK
mugshot
John Gregory
Petrostrat, UK
mugshot
Richard Howe
Morgan Goodall Palaeo Pty Ltd, Australia
mugshot
Brian Huber
Smithsonian Institute, Washington, USA
mugshot
David Lazarus
Museum fur Naturkunde, Berlin, Germany
mugshot
Jackie Lees
Consultant, Houston, USA
mugshot
Bridget Wade
University College London, UK
mugshot
Jeremy R. Young
University College London, UK

Advisory Board - Calcareous nannoplankton

mugshot
Claudia Agnini
Università di Padova, Italy
mugshot
Kevin Cooper
RPS Group, UK
mugshot
Tom Dunkley Jones
University of Birmingham, UK
mugshot
Liam Gallagher
Network Stratigraphic, UK
mugshot
Matt Hampton
Network Stratigraphic, UK
mugshot
Emanuela Mattioli
Lyon University, France
mugshot
Dave Rutledge
Petrostrat, UK
mugshot
Jamie Shamrock
Exxon Mobil, Texas, USA
mugshot
David Watkins
University of Nebraska, USA

Advisory Board - Planktonic Foraminifera

mugshot
Tracy Aze
University of Leeds UK
mugshot
Heather Birch
PalaeoVision Ltd., UK
mugshot
Geert-Jan Brummer
NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, NL
mugshot
Robert Campbell
Shell, Texas, USA
mugshot
Kirsty Edgar
University of Birmingham, UK
mugshot
Isabel Fenton
Natural History Museum, London, UK
mugshot
Felix Gradstein
Natural History Museum, University of Oslo, Norway
mugshot
Mark Leckie
University of Massachusetts - Amherst, USA
mugshot
Lizette Leon-Rodriguez
Exxon Mobil, Texas, USA
mugshot
Maria Rose Petrizzo
Università di Milano, Italy
mugshot
Chris Poole
University College London, UK
mugshot
Alessio Fabbrini
University College London, UK
mugshot
Silvia Spezzaferri
Université de Fribourg, Switzerland