World Wildlife Fund

Searching by Place

Searching by Species

General

Getting Started

1. How does WildFinder work?

• WildFinder can be used two ways:
  • Choose an ecoregion and get a list of species that live there, or
    
    
  • Choose a species and get a map and list of the ecoregions where it is found.

    To get a list of species for an ecoregion, go to "Search by Place", navigate the map with map tools, and click on an ecoregion using the "species list" tool. Or search for a place by name (using ecoregion, city, country or Zip code).

    To find the distribution of a species, go to "Search by species," and enter all or part of the species name, then choose from the resulting list of species.

2. How do I control the maps?

• The tools to the right of the map allow you to zoom in, zoom out, and pan (move) the maps. Click on the tool you want (the active tool will have a red outline). Get specific explanations of each tool.

Searching by Place

3. How do I find a particular ecoregion?

• In "Search by Place" mode, you can find an ecoregion in two ways:
  • Zoom and pan the map until you locate the desired ecoregion.
    
    
  • Enter all or part of the ecoregion name in the search box on the left side of the screen. Use the radio buttons below the search box to search by place name (like city, river, and Zip code). WildFinder will return a list of ecoregions -- and other place names -- that match your search.

4. Once I've found the ecoregion I want, how do I get a list of species that live there?

• If you have located an ecoregion using the map make sure the "Species List" button - found to the right of the mapping area - is highlighted and click on the ecoregion.
  
  
• If you have found an ecoregion by searching by its name, make your desired selection from the results list. WildFinder will then center the map on the ecoregion you've chosen and display a list of all the species below the map.
  
  
• If you used the search box to select a place name (like a city or mountain), WildFinder will return a map and species list for the ecoregion that contains that place.

5. What do all the columns in the species list mean?

• The columns in the species list allow you to learn more about each species.
  • "Scientific Name" is the standard, two-word name that uniquely identifies the species. You can click on any scientific name to get a map and list of all ecoregions containing that species.
    
    
  • "Common Name" is the most commonly-used English name for the species.
    
    
  • "Class" is the taxonomic class to which the species belongs. WildFinder contains data on four classes: amphibians (Amphibia); reptiles (Reptilia); birds (Aves); and mammals (Mammalia).
    
    
  • "Endemic" tells you whether the species is endemic to that ecoregion (in other words, whether it is found only there (YES) or lives in other ecoregions too (NO)). Read our definition of endemic.
    
    
  • "Threat Status" reports the level of the threat each species faces. WildFinder reports threat status according to IUCN - The World Conservation Union, the global authority on threatened species. You can click on the threat code for any species to see IUCN's summary for that species.
    
    
  • "Image" performs a Google search for images (e.g. photographs) of this species, and will open a new window with the results.

Searching by Species

6. How do I find a particular species?

• Go to "Search by Species" and type all or part of a scientific name or common name into the search box. Use the buttons below the search box to specify your search. WildFinder will return a list of potential species that match your search.
  
  
• You can also browse species by using the "Advanced Search" below the search box. Use the drop-down boxes to narrow your search taxonomically, by choosing the Class, Order, Family, and Genus of the species you want. Use the check boxes to specify the levels of threat you want to include (you may select several threat levels at once). WildFinder will update the search after each choice to display all species that match your selections.

7. Once I've found the species I want, how do I get a map of where it lives?

• Select the scientific name from among those listed in the search results and WildFinder will show a map of the ecoregions in which the species occurs, and display (below the map) a list of those ecoregions.

8. What do all the columns in the ecoregion list mean?

• The columns in the ecoregion list allow you to learn more about each ecoregion
  • "Ecoregion Name" is the official WWF name of the ecoregion. You can click on any ecoregion name to center the map on that ecoregion and get a full species list.
  • "Ecoregion Code" uniquely identifies each ecoregion in our database.
  • "Biome" is the biome in which the ecoregion belongs. Biomes are general ecosystem types (for example, "Tropical moist forests," "Temperate grasslands and savannas," or "Tundra"), and WildFinder recognizes 14 of them.
  • "Realm" is the biogeographic realm in which the ecoregion is found (for example, "Neotropics", "Indo-Malay"). These realms can be thought of as biological continents, and WildFinder recognizes seven of them.
  • "Ecoregion Description" provides a link to text description of each ecoregion from WildWorld, WWF's online resource of information on ecoregions. You can choose either general or detailed versions of the descriptions.

General

9. How can I sort the list of species or ecoregions that result from my searches?

• Click on any column title to sort that column. For example, to alphabetize a species list by scientific name, click "Scientific Name" in the title bar at the top of the list.

10. How many species are in WildFinder?

• Currently we show the ecoregion distribution of over 26,000 species of amphibians, birds, mammals, and reptiles in WildFinder.

11. How can I see global maps that show all species in the database?

• Go to the "Map Gallery" tab at the top of the screen. A menu of map choices will appear. Click on a map name to see a thumbnail preview, and click the thumbnail to open a high-resolution Adobe PDF file for printing or downloading.

12. How can I print the results of my searches?

• Click the "Print" button to the right of the map to get a printer-friendly version of the map and listed results. Then print the page from your Web browser.

13. How can I export the search results, maps or the whole WildFinder database as digital files?

• To export the results of any query, click the "Export" button at the bottom of the list. An export page will open, giving you choices of file format, file name, and the columns you would like to export.
  
• To download the entire dataset as a Microsoft Access database, please go to our data download page.
  
• Copyright prevents WildFinder from allowing you to save or export the maps that result from searches. However, under the "Map Gallery" tab, you can select from a variety of maps to either print or download as a high-resolution Adobe PDF.

14. How can I find the meaning of a word I've found in WildFinder?

• WildFinder's glossary provides definitions for unfamiliar words.

15. Who created WildFinder, and where did the information come from?

• You can learn more about how WildFinder was created under the "About WildFinder" tab.

16. Who provided images for all 26,000 species in your database?

• Others do the collecting: Clicking on the "Images" button will run a Google Image search for that species.

17. Who do I contact for help, more information or to send comments?

• Send an e-mail for more help or information, or to provide feedback on WildFinder.