Wei Xiao, curator of the University of Guam Herbarium, holds a specimen sheet of a local plant. The herbarium holds 60,000 sheets like this one and is embarking on an effort to get them all uploaded to a virtual database that can be searched and accessed worldwide. ()
The University of Guam Herbarium is seeking the community’s help as it moves into a new phase. The physical library of 60,000 plant specimens from Guam and Micronesia, is looking to digitize its entire collection so it is searchable and accessible to researchers, biologists, and plant enthusiasts worldwide.
“We frequently get asked if our collection is online by biologists needing to identify plants and by researchers who aren’t located in Guam,” said Wei Xiao, curator of the UOG Herbarium with a doctorate in plant biology. “This project will put images of each specimen, its collection site, and its collector online so people can search and visually compare species from wherever they are.”
Typing out the data on 60,000 specimen sheets is a big task, Xiao said. In fact, the National Herbarium just completed its digitization process last year, which took nearly eight years. So Xiao and the small team at the UOG Herbarium are calling on the community to help.
Through a software program called Zooniverse, anybody with internet access can view uploaded images of the specimen sheets and type in the data on the card. One entry takes less than 5 minutes, and a volunteer could do as few or as many as they wish.
“Even if you do one or two, it’s helpful,” Xiao said.
Students can earn service-learning hours
Volunteering to do entries can be done from home, so it’s a great opportunity for high school students to earn service-learning hours, she added.
It may take several years to get all of the specimens entered, but it’s not solely about that, Xiao said — it’s more about bringing the community together for a project that reflects and documents their home island.
“It’s a community-based project that’s meaningful,” she said. “We can get it done, but we can talk about it along the way and gain an appreciation for the diversity and uniqueness of the plants in this region.”
For every 50 specimens entered, volunteers will be mailed a limited-edition UOG Herbarium sticker featuring artwork by UOG students. In order to have their entries tracked, they must first create an account on the Zooniverse platform by clicking “Register” in the top right corner.
To volunteer, go to www.uog.edu/herbarium/volunteer for instructions and a tutorial video. The UOG Herbarium will also be open for tours on UOG’s Charter Day at 10 a.m., noon, and 2 p.m. this Thursday.
For any questions, volunteers may contact curator Wei Xiao or curatorial assistant Kyla Tuazon at the UOG Herbarium at 671) 735-2791 or herbarium@triton.uog.edu.
