Funded by:
Artsdatabanken (Norwegian Species information Center), Artsprosjektet (Species project), 2010-2012 (project number 70184219)
Description of Project:
In collaboration with two internationally recognized taxonomic experts, the project will substantially expand our knowledge on a poorly known group of parasitic wasps (family Ichneumonidae). All specimens and samples deposited at the Natural History Museum will be examined and identified. A major source of new data will be the field work planned for 2011, in close collaboration with two research institutes (Bioforsk and Skog og Landskap) and one regional museum (Randsfjordmuseene). Up to 100 species could be added to the Norwegian insect fauna, including 10–15 species new to science. All newly collected specimens will be deposited in the museum collections. The information associated with the specimens (including highly accurate geographic coordinates) will be digitized, recorded in the existing database, and provided to GBIF and Artskart.
The project includes the following goals:
- to generate new knowledge on a poorly know group of Norwegian insects (family Ichneumonidae, Hymenoptera) and discover up to 100 species previously not recorded in Norway.
- to identify (reidentify) specimens from the target taxon in existing museum collections, including specimens in unsorted samples
- to sample the target taxon in the field, with particular focus on previously overlooked localities and habitats, using taxon-specific collection methods
- to identify the newly collected specimens and incorporate them in the museum collection
- to digitize species occurrence data and make them available through GBIF and Artskart
- to make the specimens and datasets available to other important biodiversity-related initiatives, such as DNA bardcoding and Norwegian Red List
Additional information about the project is available here.