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GBIF

GBIF provides free and open access to biodiversity data

Actions22

  • Collection Actions
  • Dataset Actions
  • Dataset Search Actions
  • Installation Actions
  • Institution Actions
  • Occurrence Actions
  • Occurrence Count Actions
  • Occurrence Search Actions
  • Occurrence Search Catalog Number Actions
  • Occurrence Search Collection Code Actions
  • Occurrence Search Occurrence ID Actions
  • Occurrence Search Recorded By Actions
  • Occurrence Search Record Number Actions
  • Occurrence Search Institution Code Actions
  • Organization Actions
  • Name Parser Actions
  • Network Actions
  • Node Actions
  • Species Actions
  • Species Match Actions
  • Species Search Actions
  • Species Suggest Actions

Dataset Search → Get

AI-generated

Overview

The node provides access to the GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) API, enabling users to search and retrieve biodiversity datasets and related information. Specifically, the "Dataset Search" resource with the "Get" operation allows users to perform a full-text search for datasets in GBIF's database, applying various filters to narrow down results.

This node is beneficial for researchers, ecologists, data scientists, and developers who want to programmatically query biodiversity datasets by keywords, geographic regions, time periods, organizations, licenses, and other metadata. For example, one could search for datasets related to a specific continent or country, filter by dataset type (e.g., checklist or occurrence), or find datasets endorsed by particular nodes or organizations.

Practical examples:

  • Searching for all datasets related to Africa containing the keyword "mammals".
  • Filtering datasets published by a certain organization within a specific decade.
  • Retrieving datasets licensed under CC BY 4.0 for reuse in research.

Properties

Name Meaning
Query (q) Simple full text search parameter; can be a word or phrase to search datasets.
Additional Fields A collection of optional filters and parameters to refine the search:
- Continent Filter datasets by continent. Options: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South America.
- Country Filter datasets by country using ISO 639-1 two-letter country code.
- Decade Filter datasets by temporal coverage broken down into decades (e.g., 1880, 1960). Returns datasets contained in or covering the entire decade or more.
- Endorsing Node Key Filter datasets by the node key that endorsed the dataset's publisher.
- Facet Multi-select facets to group results by: Country, Decade, Hosting Organization, Keyword, Publishing Country, Publishing Organization, Sub-Type, Type.
- Facet Minimum Count Minimum count threshold for facets to be included (e.g., exclude facets with counts less than 1000).
- Hosting Country Filter datasets by hosting organization's country (ISO 639-1 code).
- Hosting Organization Filter datasets by hosting organization UUID key.
- Identifier Filter by an identifier string or integer value.
- Identifier Type Type of identifier. Options include CITES, DOI, FTP, GBIF Node, GBIF Participant, GRSciColl ID, GRID, Handler, LSID, ROR, URI, URL, UUID, Unknown, etc.
- Keyword Case-insensitive plain text keyword filter applied on tags, keyword collections, and temporal coverages.
- License Filter by dataset license. Options: CC0 1.0, CC BY 4.0, CC BY NC 4.0, Unspecified, Unsupported.
- Machine Tag Name Filter entities with a machine tag of the specified name (used with namespace).
- Machine Tag Namespace Filter entities with a machine tag in the specified namespace.
- Machine Tag Value Filter entities with a machine tag of the specified value (used with namespace and name).
- Network Key Filter datasets associated with a specific network.
- Project ID Filter or facet based on project ID; multiple datasets can share the same project ID.
- Publishing Country Filter datasets by owning organization's country (ISO 639-1 code).
- Publishing Organization Filter datasets by publishing organization UUID key.
- Sub-Type Filter by dataset sub-type. Options: Derived From Occurrence, Global Species Dataset, Inventory Regional, Inventory Thematic, Observation, Nomenclator Authority, Specimen, Taxonomic Authority.
- Type Filter by dataset type. Options: Checklist, Metadata, Occurrence, Sampling Event.

Output

The node outputs an array of JSON objects representing the datasets returned by the GBIF API search endpoint. Each object contains detailed metadata about a dataset matching the search criteria, including fields such as title, description, publisher, geographic and temporal coverage, licensing, identifiers, and more.

No binary data output is produced by this node.

Dependencies

  • Requires internet access to call the public GBIF API at https://api.gbif.org/v1/dataset/search.
  • No authentication or API keys are required as the GBIF API is publicly accessible.
  • Uses n8n's HTTP request helper to perform GET requests.

Troubleshooting

  • Empty Results: If no datasets are returned, verify that the query and filters are correctly set and that they match existing datasets in GBIF.
  • Invalid Parameter Values: Using incorrect country codes, invalid date formats, or unsupported facet values may cause errors or empty responses. Ensure inputs conform to expected formats.
  • API Rate Limits or Downtime: Although GBIF API is public, excessive requests might be throttled. Retry after some time if requests fail.
  • Network Issues: Ensure the node has network connectivity to reach the GBIF API endpoint.
  • Malformed Queries: Avoid special characters or improper wildcards in the query string that might cause API errors.

Links and References

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