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Add WoRMS (World Register of Marine Species) Integration #255
Description
Description
Integrate WoRMS (World Register of Marine Species) as an authoritative taxonomic data source for marine organisms (corals, inverts, marine fish).
Background
WoRMS is the most authoritative source for marine species taxonomy:
- 240,000+ marine species with accepted names
- Maintained by taxonomic experts worldwide
- Tracks synonyms and taxonomic changes
- Free REST API access
- Strong coverage for corals and marine invertebrates
Website: https://www.marinespecies.org/
Benefits
- Authoritative taxonomy: Gold standard for marine species
- Synonym detection: Find alternate/outdated names
- Taxonomic validation: Verify our species names are current
- Rich metadata: Classification, distribution, references
- Expert-curated: Higher quality than crowdsourced data
API Overview
Base URL: https://www.marinespecies.org/rest/
Key Endpoints:
GET /AphiaRecordsByName/{scientificname}- Search by nameGET /AphiaRecordByAphiaID/{id}- Get full recordGET /AphiaClassificationByAphiaID/{id}- Get taxonomyGET /AphiaSynonymsByAphiaID/{id}- Get synonyms
Rate Limiting: Not specified, use conservative 200ms delay
Implementation Plan
1. Create Integration Client
// src/integrations/worms.ts
export interface WoRMSResult {
found: boolean;
aphia_id?: number;
species_url?: string;
accepted_name?: string;
synonyms?: string[];
classification?: {
kingdom?: string;
phylum?: string;
class?: string;
order?: string;
family?: string;
};
}
export async function getExternalData(
genus: string,
species: string
): Promise<WoRMSResult>;2. Create Sync Script
scripts/sync-worms-all-species.tsFocus on:
- Marine fish
- Corals
- Marine invertebrates
3. Use Cases
Taxonomic Validation:
- Check if our species names are current
- Flag outdated/synonym names
- Suggest accepted names
Synonym Detection:
- Find alternate names for same species
- Merge duplicate species entries
- Update to current nomenclature
Tasks
- Create `src/integrations/worms.ts` client
- Implement name lookup and validation
- Create sync script for marine species
- Add synonym detection logic
- Create validation report for admins
- Add to master orchestrator (optional)
- Test with coral and invert species
- Update documentation
Acceptance Criteria
6F1A- WoRMS API client successfully queries species
- Taxonomic validation identifies outdated names
- Synonyms stored in database
- Species URLs added to external references
- Rate limiting respects API guidelines
- Documentation updated
Priority
Low - Useful for data quality but we have GBIF coverage.
Related Resources
Related to #240 (External Data Sources Integration)
Activity