Taxon → Get
AI-generatedOverview
This node integrates with the Global Biotic Interactions (GloBI) API to retrieve ecological interaction data between species taxa. Specifically, for the Taxon resource and Get operation, it fetches interactions involving a specified source taxon and interaction type, optionally filtered by a target taxon. This is useful for researchers, ecologists, or biodiversity informatics professionals who want to explore relationships such as predation, parasitism, pollination, or habitat associations between species.
Practical examples include:
- Finding all species that a mosquito species (e.g., Aedes aegypti) preys on.
- Retrieving parasites associated with a particular host species.
- Exploring mutualistic or commensal relationships involving a plant or animal taxon.
Properties
| Name | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Source Taxon Name | The scientific name of the source taxon from which to find interactions (e.g., "Aedes aegypti"). |
| Interaction Type | The type of ecological interaction to query. Options include: Eats, Eaten By, Preys On, Preyed Upon By, Kills, Killed By, Parasite Of, Has Parasite, Endoparasite Of, Has Endoparasite, Ectoparasite Of, Has Ectoparasite, Parasitoid Of, Has Parasitoid, Host Of, Has Host, Pollinates, Pollinated By, Pathogen Of, Has Pathogen, Vector Of, Has Vector, Dispersal Vector Of, Has Dispersal Vector, Has Habitat, Creates Habitat For, Epiphyte Of, Has Epiphyte, Provides Nutrients For, Acquires Nutrients From, Symbiont Of, Mutualist Of, Commensalist Of, Flowers Visited By, Visits Flowers Of, Ecologically Related To, Co-Occurs With, Co-Roosts With, Interacts With, Adjacent To. |
| Target Taxon Name | (Optional) The scientific name of the target taxon to further filter interactions (e.g., "Homo sapiens"). |
| Additional Fields | Collection of optional parameters: • Output Format: Choose the format of the output data — Csv, Dot, or Json (default: Json). • Include Observations: Boolean flag to include observational data in the response. |
Output
The node outputs an array of JSON objects representing the interaction data retrieved from the GloBI API. The structure depends on the selected output format but generally includes details about the source taxon, target taxon, interaction type, and possibly observation metadata if requested.
If binary data were supported (not indicated here), it would typically represent files in CSV or DOT formats, but this node returns parsed JSON data by default.
Dependencies
- Requires internet access to call the public GloBI API endpoints.
- No authentication or API keys are needed as the API is open access.
- Uses standard HTTP GET requests with JSON responses.
- No additional n8n credentials or environment variables are required.
Troubleshooting
- Empty or no results: Verify that the source taxon name and interaction type are correctly spelled and valid within the GloBI database. Also, check if the optional target taxon is too restrictive.
- API request failures: Network issues or temporary downtime of the GloBI API can cause errors. Retry after some time or check network connectivity.
- Invalid output format: Ensure the output format option is one of the allowed values (csv, dot, json).
- Unexpected data structure: If the API changes its response format, the node might not parse data correctly. Check the GloBI API documentation for updates.