NatureServe Explorer

"NatureServe represents an international network of biological inventories -- known as natural heritage programs or conservation data centers -- operating in all 50 U.S. states, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean. Together we not only collect and manage detailed local information on plants, animals, and ecosystems, but develop information products, data management tools, and conservation services to help meet local, national, and global conservation needs. The objective scientific information about species and ecosystems developed by NatureServe is used by all sectors of society -- conservation groups, government agencies, corporations, academia, and the public -- to make informed decisions about managing our natural resources."

www.natureserve.org

"Search the database for species or ecological communities & systems." The customized search forms make it simple, with a variety of check boxes, radio buttons, drop down menus... And on both search forms, you’ll find tabs at the top that take you to pages where you can specify geographic location and/or status (e.g., extinct, imperiled, secure, etc.). Note that these options are also available as live links as you scroll down the search page.

At the far right side of the screen, for each result, you can choose summary (report), distribution (map), status, image (if available), or a comprehensive report which includes everything. You can also retrieve a comprehensive report by clicking on the name of the species in the list of results. A drop-down menu allows you to move around to different sections of the report.

If you’re looking for information "on the birds, mammals and amphibians of Latin America and the Caribbean," a link on the home page will take you to InfoNatura, a similar site that is also available in Spanish and Portugese.

Besides Explorer and InfoNatura, there are other databases available from the NatureServe site:

+ Local Program Data from "natural heritage programs and conservation
data centers" in the U.S. and Canada

+ Global Amphibian Assessment, which is the "first-ever comprehensive
assessment of the conservation status of the world’s 5,918 known
species of frogs, toads, salamanders, and caecilians"

+ Ecology Data, including Ecological Systems of the United States,
Ecological Systems of Latin America and the Caribbean,
Geographically Isolated Wetlands in the U.S., Coastal and Marine
Classification, and Ecological Integrity Assessments of Wetlands

+ Animal Data, including digital distribution maps of birds, mammals
and amphibians; and Distribution of Native U.S. Fishes by Watershed

+ Plant Data, including invasive species distribution