VegBankAPI (2.0.0-beta)

License: Apache 2.0

Welcome to the official documentation for the VegBank REST API. You can find out more about VegBank at https://github.com/NCEAS/vegbank2.

Introduction

The VegBank data system provides a community managed data portal for vegetation data, particularly plots, plant taxonomy, and communities. Developed, maintained, and operated by the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS), VegBank is a product of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) Vegetation Panel, and is affiliated with the National Vegetation Classification (USNVC).

VegBank provides a common storage system and web portal for accessing:

Plot data
Plant taxonomy data
Community data

VegBank is an open source, community project. We welcome contributions in many forms, including code, graphics, documentation, bug reports, testing, etc.

Use the VegBank discussions to ask questions, raise issues, or discuss contributions with us.

Plot observations

Operations related to plot observations

Get plot observation

Retrieve a single plot observation using its ob_code.

path Parameters

ob_code

required

string

Example: ob.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "geo" "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `geo`: Returns core location fields only `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ob_code	string VegBank observation identifier
author_obs_code	string Code or name provided by the author to identify the plot observation. When a plot has only one observation, this will often equal author_plot_code.
latitude	number <float> Latitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied
longitude	number <float> Longitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plot_obs_geo

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_obs_code": "YOSE.001",
"latitude": 42.19,
"longitude": -104.54
}
]
}

Get plot observations by project

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of plot observations representing all plot observations associated with the specified project (using its pj_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

pj_code

required

string

Example: pj.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "geo" "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `geo`: Returns core location fields only `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "author_obs_code" "+author_obs_code" "-author_obs_code" Example: sort=-author_obs_code Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `author_obs_code` - Sort by the author-provided plot observation code Examples: `sort=author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code ascending `sort=-author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code descending
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format
num_taxa	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of taxa to return per plot observation. Sort order depends on detail level: With `detail=minimal`: Descending order by max cover With `detail=full`: Alphabetical order by plant name
num_comms	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of communities to return per plot observation, ordered by commclass_id

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ob_code	string VegBank observation identifier
author_obs_code	string Code or name provided by the author to identify the plot observation. When a plot has only one observation, this will often equal author_plot_code.
latitude	number <float> Latitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied
longitude	number <float> Longitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plot_obs_geo

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_obs_code": "YOSE.001",
"latitude": 42.19,
"longitude": -104.54
}
]
}

Get plot observations by party

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of plot observations representing all plot observations associated with the specified party (using its py_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

py_code

required

string

Example: py.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "geo" "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `geo`: Returns core location fields only `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "author_obs_code" "+author_obs_code" "-author_obs_code" Example: sort=-author_obs_code Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `author_obs_code` - Sort by the author-provided plot observation code Examples: `sort=author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code ascending `sort=-author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code descending
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format
num_taxa	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of taxa to return per plot observation. Sort order depends on detail level: With `detail=minimal`: Descending order by max cover With `detail=full`: Alphabetical order by plant name
num_comms	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of communities to return per plot observation, ordered by commclass_id

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ob_code	string VegBank observation identifier
author_obs_code	string Code or name provided by the author to identify the plot observation. When a plot has only one observation, this will often equal author_plot_code.
latitude	number <float> Latitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied
longitude	number <float> Longitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plot_obs_geo

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_obs_code": "YOSE.001",
"latitude": 42.19,
"longitude": -104.54
}
]
}

Get plot observations by plant concept

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of plot observations representing all plot observations with taxon observations interpreted to the specified plant concept (using its pc_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

pc_code

required

string

Example: pc.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "geo" "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `geo`: Returns core location fields only `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "author_obs_code" "+author_obs_code" "-author_obs_code" Example: sort=-author_obs_code Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `author_obs_code` - Sort by the author-provided plot observation code Examples: `sort=author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code ascending `sort=-author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code descending
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format
num_taxa	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of taxa to return per plot observation. Sort order depends on detail level: With `detail=minimal`: Descending order by max cover With `detail=full`: Alphabetical order by plant name
num_comms	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of communities to return per plot observation, ordered by commclass_id

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ob_code	string VegBank observation identifier
author_obs_code	string Code or name provided by the author to identify the plot observation. When a plot has only one observation, this will often equal author_plot_code.
latitude	number <float> Latitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied
longitude	number <float> Longitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plot_obs_geo

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_obs_code": "YOSE.001",
"latitude": 42.19,
"longitude": -104.54
}
]
}

Get plot observations by community concept

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of plot observations representing all plot observations with taxon observations interpreted to the specified community concept (using its cc_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

cc_code

required

string

Example: cc.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "geo" "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `geo`: Returns core location fields only `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "author_obs_code" "+author_obs_code" "-author_obs_code" Example: sort=-author_obs_code Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `author_obs_code` - Sort by the author-provided plot observation code Examples: `sort=author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code ascending `sort=-author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code descending
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format
num_taxa	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of taxa to return per plot observation. Sort order depends on detail level: With `detail=minimal`: Descending order by max cover With `detail=full`: Alphabetical order by plant name
num_comms	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of communities to return per plot observation, ordered by commclass_id

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ob_code	string VegBank observation identifier
author_obs_code	string Code or name provided by the author to identify the plot observation. When a plot has only one observation, this will often equal author_plot_code.
latitude	number <float> Latitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied
longitude	number <float> Longitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plot_obs_geo

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_obs_code": "YOSE.001",
"latitude": 42.19,
"longitude": -104.54
}
]
}

Get plot observations by cover method

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of plot observations representing all plot observations using the specified cover method (using its cm_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

cm_code

required

string

Example: cm.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "geo" "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `geo`: Returns core location fields only `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "author_obs_code" "+author_obs_code" "-author_obs_code" Example: sort=-author_obs_code Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `author_obs_code` - Sort by the author-provided plot observation code Examples: `sort=author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code ascending `sort=-author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code descending
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format
num_taxa	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of taxa to return per plot observation. Sort order depends on detail level: With `detail=minimal`: Descending order by max cover With `detail=full`: Alphabetical order by plant name
num_comms	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of communities to return per plot observation, ordered by commclass_id

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ob_code	string VegBank observation identifier
author_obs_code	string Code or name provided by the author to identify the plot observation. When a plot has only one observation, this will often equal author_plot_code.
latitude	number <float> Latitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied
longitude	number <float> Longitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plot_obs_geo

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_obs_code": "YOSE.001",
"latitude": 42.19,
"longitude": -104.54
}
]
}

Get plot observations by stratum method

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of plot observations representing all plot observations using the specified stratum method (using its sm_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

sm_code

required

string

Example: sm.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "geo" "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `geo`: Returns core location fields only `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "author_obs_code" "+author_obs_code" "-author_obs_code" Example: sort=-author_obs_code Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `author_obs_code` - Sort by the author-provided plot observation code Examples: `sort=author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code ascending `sort=-author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code descending
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format
num_taxa	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of taxa to return per plot observation. Sort order depends on detail level: With `detail=minimal`: Descending order by max cover With `detail=full`: Alphabetical order by plant name
num_comms	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of communities to return per plot observation, ordered by commclass_id

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ob_code	string VegBank observation identifier
author_obs_code	string Code or name provided by the author to identify the plot observation. When a plot has only one observation, this will often equal author_plot_code.
latitude	number <float> Latitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied
longitude	number <float> Longitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plot_obs_geo

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_obs_code": "YOSE.001",
"latitude": 42.19,
"longitude": -104.54
}
]
}

Get all plot observations

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of plot observations representing all plot observations in VegBank, or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "geo" "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `geo`: Returns core location fields only `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "author_obs_code" "+author_obs_code" "-author_obs_code" Example: sort=-author_obs_code Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `author_obs_code` - Sort by the author-provided plot observation code Examples: `sort=author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code ascending `sort=-author_obs_code` - Sort by observation code descending
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format
num_taxa	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of taxa to return per plot observation. Sort order depends on detail level: With `detail=minimal`: Descending order by max cover With `detail=full`: Alphabetical order by plant name
num_comms	integer >= 0 Default: 5 Number of communities to return per plot observation, ordered by commclass_id

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ob_code	string VegBank observation identifier
author_obs_code	string Code or name provided by the author to identify the plot observation. When a plot has only one observation, this will often equal author_plot_code.
latitude	number <float> Latitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied
longitude	number <float> Longitude of the plot origin in degrees and decimals (datum WGS84), fuzzing applied

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plot_obs_geo

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_obs_code": "YOSE.001",
"latitude": 42.19,
"longitude": -104.54
}
]
}

Upload plot observations

status: beta

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Array

object (tbd)

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Array

string

counts and vb_codes of newly created records

Response samples

200
403
500

Content type

application/json

["string"
]

Community concepts

Operations related to community concepts

Get community concept

Retrieve a single community concept using its cc_code.

path Parameters

cc_code

required

string

Example: cc.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
comm_name	string Community name, as recorded on the community concept
comm_code	string Code for the community concept, derived from a community usage record of class system 'Code'
comm_description	string Description of the community concept by the party contributing the concept
concept_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the community was identified by a name.
concept_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the community was identified by a name.
status_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the status was reported
status_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the status was reported
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
comm_level	string Level in the taxonomic hierarchy to which a class belongs. This is an open list with the possible values defined by the classification system employed. If the party responsible for the record is using the U.S. National Vegetation Classification, the acceptable levels are defined in the Vegetation Classification Standard of the Federal Geographic Data Committee as adopted June 1997. The standard is available at http://biology.usgs.gov/fgdc.veg/standards/vegstd.htm and the allowable entries for each of the physiognomic levels are listed in the appendix (see http://www.fgdc.gov/standards/documents/standards/vegetation/tables19-41.pdf). If the Braun-Blanquet classification system is employed, the acceptable values are defined in the International Code of Phytosociological Nomenclature (Weber, H.E., Moravec, J. Theurillat, J.-P. 2000. Journal of Vegetation Science. 11: 739-769)
status	string Status of the concept by the party (accepted, not accepted, undetermined)
start_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party started.
stop_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party ended.
current_accepted	boolean Is this concept currently accepted by at least one party?
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party that made the status assignment
party_label	string Name/label for the party that made the status assignment
comm_party_comments	string Comments by party providing rationale for status assignment
parent_cc_code	string VegBank identifier of the parent concept in the classification hierarchy. For example, if this concept were at the association level, the parent would be a concept that is the parent alliance type.
parent_name	string Name of the parent concept in the classification hierarchy

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_concept_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cc_code": "cc.1",
"comm_name": "Muhlenbergia rigens Wet Meadow",
"comm_code": "CEGL005306",
"comm_description": "This herbaceous bunchgrass association has been documented in...",
"concept_rf_code": "rf.1",
"concept_rf_label": "NatureServe Biotics 2019",
"status_rf_code": "rf.1",
"status_rf_label": "NatureServe Biotics 2019",
"obs_count": 17,
"comm_level": "Association",
"status": "accepted",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"current_accepted": true,
"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"comm_party_comments": "This association is the result of...",
"parent_cc_code": "cc.1",
"parent_name": "Leymus cinereus - Leymus triticoides Alkaline Wet Meadow Alliance"
}
]
}

Get community concepts by cl

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of community concepts representing all concepts interpreted under the specified community classification (using its cl_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

cl_code

required

string

Example: cl.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "comm_name" "+comm_name" "-comm_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `comm_name` - Sort by community name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
comm_name	string Community name, as recorded on the community concept
comm_code	string Code for the community concept, derived from a community usage record of class system 'Code'
comm_description	string Description of the community concept by the party contributing the concept
concept_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the community was identified by a name.
concept_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the community was identified by a name.
status_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the status was reported
status_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the status was reported
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
comm_level	string Level in the taxonomic hierarchy to which a class belongs. This is an open list with the possible values defined by the classification system employed. If the party responsible for the record is using the U.S. National Vegetation Classification, the acceptable levels are defined in the Vegetation Classification Standard of the Federal Geographic Data Committee as adopted June 1997. The standard is available at http://biology.usgs.gov/fgdc.veg/standards/vegstd.htm and the allowable entries for each of the physiognomic levels are listed in the appendix (see http://www.fgdc.gov/standards/documents/standards/vegetation/tables19-41.pdf). If the Braun-Blanquet classification system is employed, the acceptable values are defined in the International Code of Phytosociological Nomenclature (Weber, H.E., Moravec, J. Theurillat, J.-P. 2000. Journal of Vegetation Science. 11: 739-769)
status	string Status of the concept by the party (accepted, not accepted, undetermined)
start_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party started.
stop_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party ended.
current_accepted	boolean Is this concept currently accepted by at least one party?
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party that made the status assignment
party_label	string Name/label for the party that made the status assignment
comm_party_comments	string Comments by party providing rationale for status assignment
parent_cc_code	string VegBank identifier of the parent concept in the classification hierarchy. For example, if this concept were at the association level, the parent would be a concept that is the parent alliance type.
parent_name	string Name of the parent concept in the classification hierarchy

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_concept_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cc_code": "cc.1",
"comm_name": "Muhlenbergia rigens Wet Meadow",
"comm_code": "CEGL005306",
"comm_description": "This herbaceous bunchgrass association has been documented in...",
"concept_rf_code": "rf.1",
"concept_rf_label": "NatureServe Biotics 2019",
"status_rf_code": "rf.1",
"status_rf_label": "NatureServe Biotics 2019",
"obs_count": 17,
"comm_level": "Association",
"status": "accepted",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"current_accepted": true,
"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"comm_party_comments": "This association is the result of...",
"parent_cc_code": "cc.1",
"parent_name": "Leymus cinereus - Leymus triticoides Alkaline Wet Meadow Alliance"
}
]
}

Get community concepts by ob

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of community concepts representing all concepts associated with the specified plot observation (using its ob_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

ob_code

required

string

Example: ob.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "comm_name" "+comm_name" "-comm_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `comm_name` - Sort by community name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
comm_name	string Community name, as recorded on the community concept
comm_code	string Code for the community concept, derived from a community usage record of class system 'Code'
comm_description	string Description of the community concept by the party contributing the concept
concept_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the community was identified by a name.
concept_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the community was identified by a name.
status_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the status was reported
status_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the status was reported
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
comm_level	string Level in the taxonomic hierarchy to which a class belongs. This is an open list with the possible values defined by the classification system employed. If the party responsible for the record is using the U.S. National Vegetation Classification, the acceptable levels are defined in the Vegetation Classification Standard of the Federal Geographic Data Committee as adopted June 1997. The standard is available at http://biology.usgs.gov/fgdc.veg/standards/vegstd.htm and the allowable entries for each of the physiognomic levels are listed in the appendix (see http://www.fgdc.gov/standards/documents/standards/vegetation/tables19-41.pdf). If the Braun-Blanquet classification system is employed, the acceptable values are defined in the International Code of Phytosociological Nomenclature (Weber, H.E., Moravec, J. Theurillat, J.-P. 2000. Journal of Vegetation Science. 11: 739-769)
status	string Status of the concept by the party (accepted, not accepted, undetermined)
start_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party started.
stop_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party ended.
current_accepted	boolean Is this concept currently accepted by at least one party?
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party that made the status assignment
party_label	string Name/label for the party that made the status assignment
comm_party_comments	string Comments by party providing rationale for status assignment
parent_cc_code	string VegBank identifier of the parent concept in the classification hierarchy. For example, if this concept were at the association level, the parent would be a concept that is the parent alliance type.
parent_name	string Name of the parent concept in the classification hierarchy

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_concept_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cc_code": "cc.1",
"comm_name": "Muhlenbergia rigens Wet Meadow",
"comm_code": "CEGL005306",
"comm_description": "This herbaceous bunchgrass association has been documented in...",
"concept_rf_code": "rf.1",
"concept_rf_label": "NatureServe Biotics 2019",
"status_rf_code": "rf.1",
"status_rf_label": "NatureServe Biotics 2019",
"obs_count": 17,
"comm_level": "Association",
"status": "accepted",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"current_accepted": true,
"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"comm_party_comments": "This association is the result of...",
"parent_cc_code": "cc.1",
"parent_name": "Leymus cinereus - Leymus triticoides Alkaline Wet Meadow Alliance"
}
]
}

Get all community concepts

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of community concepts representing all concepts stored in VegBank, or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "comm_name" "+comm_name" "-comm_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `comm_name` - Sort by community name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
comm_name	string Community name, as recorded on the community concept
comm_code	string Code for the community concept, derived from a community usage record of class system 'Code'
comm_description	string Description of the community concept by the party contributing the concept
concept_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the community was identified by a name.
concept_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the community was identified by a name.
status_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the status was reported
status_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the status was reported
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
comm_level	string Level in the taxonomic hierarchy to which a class belongs. This is an open list with the possible values defined by the classification system employed. If the party responsible for the record is using the U.S. National Vegetation Classification, the acceptable levels are defined in the Vegetation Classification Standard of the Federal Geographic Data Committee as adopted June 1997. The standard is available at http://biology.usgs.gov/fgdc.veg/standards/vegstd.htm and the allowable entries for each of the physiognomic levels are listed in the appendix (see http://www.fgdc.gov/standards/documents/standards/vegetation/tables19-41.pdf). If the Braun-Blanquet classification system is employed, the acceptable values are defined in the International Code of Phytosociological Nomenclature (Weber, H.E., Moravec, J. Theurillat, J.-P. 2000. Journal of Vegetation Science. 11: 739-769)
status	string Status of the concept by the party (accepted, not accepted, undetermined)
start_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party started.
stop_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party ended.
current_accepted	boolean Is this concept currently accepted by at least one party?
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party that made the status assignment
party_label	string Name/label for the party that made the status assignment
comm_party_comments	string Comments by party providing rationale for status assignment
parent_cc_code	string VegBank identifier of the parent concept in the classification hierarchy. For example, if this concept were at the association level, the parent would be a concept that is the parent alliance type.
parent_name	string Name of the parent concept in the classification hierarchy

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_concept_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cc_code": "cc.1",
"comm_name": "Muhlenbergia rigens Wet Meadow",
"comm_code": "CEGL005306",
"comm_description": "This herbaceous bunchgrass association has been documented in...",
"concept_rf_code": "rf.1",
"concept_rf_label": "NatureServe Biotics 2019",
"status_rf_code": "rf.1",
"status_rf_label": "NatureServe Biotics 2019",
"obs_count": 17,
"comm_level": "Association",
"status": "accepted",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"current_accepted": true,
"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"comm_party_comments": "This association is the result of...",
"parent_cc_code": "cc.1",
"parent_name": "Leymus cinereus - Leymus triticoides Alkaline Wet Meadow Alliance"
}
]
}

Upload community concepts

status: planned

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Array

object (tbd)

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Array

string

counts and vb_codes of newly created records

Response samples

200
403
500

Content type

application/json

["string"
]

Community classifications

Operations related to community classifications

Get community classification

Retrieve a single community classification using its cl_code.

path Parameters

cl_code

required

string

Example: cl.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
ob_code	string VegBank plot observation identifier
class_start_date	string <date> Start date for the application of a vegetation class to a plot observation by one or more parties.
class_stop_date	string <date> Stop date for the application of a vegetation class to a plot observation by one or more parties.
inspection	boolean Was the classification informed by simple inspection of data?
table_analysis	boolean Was the classification informed by inspection of floristic composition tables?
multivariate_analysis	boolean Was the classification informed by use of multivariate numerical tools?
expert_system	string Description of any automated expert system used in classification
class_publication_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the publication wherein the observation was classified
class_publication_rf_label	string Reference label for the publication wherein the observation was classified
class_notes	string Notes about the classification event by the parties participating in the event. This might include the purpose or rationale for the classification.

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_class_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cl_code": "cl.1",
"ob_code": "ob.1",
"class_start_date": "2006-05-30",
"class_stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"inspection": false,
"table_analysis": false,
"multivariate_analysis": false,
"expert_system": "DCA, UPGMA",
"class_publication_rf_code": "rf.1",
"class_publication_rf_label": "NVC 2004",
"class_notes": "Abies Grandis Alliance"
}
]
}

Get community classifications by cc

Retrieve a paginated collection of community classifications using the specified community concept (using its cc_code).

path Parameters

cc_code

required

string

Example: cc.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "comm_name" "+comm_name" "-comm_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `comm_name` - Sort by community name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
ob_code	string VegBank plot observation identifier
class_start_date	string <date> Start date for the application of a vegetation class to a plot observation by one or more parties.
class_stop_date	string <date> Stop date for the application of a vegetation class to a plot observation by one or more parties.
inspection	boolean Was the classification informed by simple inspection of data?
table_analysis	boolean Was the classification informed by inspection of floristic composition tables?
multivariate_analysis	boolean Was the classification informed by use of multivariate numerical tools?
expert_system	string Description of any automated expert system used in classification
class_publication_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the publication wherein the observation was classified
class_publication_rf_label	string Reference label for the publication wherein the observation was classified
class_notes	string Notes about the classification event by the parties participating in the event. This might include the purpose or rationale for the classification.

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_class_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cl_code": "cl.1",
"ob_code": "ob.1",
"class_start_date": "2006-05-30",
"class_stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"inspection": false,
"table_analysis": false,
"multivariate_analysis": false,
"expert_system": "DCA, UPGMA",
"class_publication_rf_code": "rf.1",
"class_publication_rf_label": "NVC 2004",
"class_notes": "Abies Grandis Alliance"
}
]
}

Get community classifications by ob

Retrieve a paginated collection of community classifications associated with the specified plot observation (using its ob_code).

path Parameters

ob_code

required

string

Example: ob.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "comm_name" "+comm_name" "-comm_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `comm_name` - Sort by community name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
ob_code	string VegBank plot observation identifier
class_start_date	string <date> Start date for the application of a vegetation class to a plot observation by one or more parties.
class_stop_date	string <date> Stop date for the application of a vegetation class to a plot observation by one or more parties.
inspection	boolean Was the classification informed by simple inspection of data?
table_analysis	boolean Was the classification informed by inspection of floristic composition tables?
multivariate_analysis	boolean Was the classification informed by use of multivariate numerical tools?
expert_system	string Description of any automated expert system used in classification
class_publication_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the publication wherein the observation was classified
class_publication_rf_label	string Reference label for the publication wherein the observation was classified
class_notes	string Notes about the classification event by the parties participating in the event. This might include the purpose or rationale for the classification.

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_class_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cl_code": "cl.1",
"ob_code": "ob.1",
"class_start_date": "2006-05-30",
"class_stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"inspection": false,
"table_analysis": false,
"multivariate_analysis": false,
"expert_system": "DCA, UPGMA",
"class_publication_rf_code": "rf.1",
"class_publication_rf_label": "NVC 2004",
"class_notes": "Abies Grandis Alliance"
}
]
}

Get all community classifications

Retrieve a paginated collection of all community classifications recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
ob_code	string VegBank plot observation identifier
class_start_date	string <date> Start date for the application of a vegetation class to a plot observation by one or more parties.
class_stop_date	string <date> Stop date for the application of a vegetation class to a plot observation by one or more parties.
inspection	boolean Was the classification informed by simple inspection of data?
table_analysis	boolean Was the classification informed by inspection of floristic composition tables?
multivariate_analysis	boolean Was the classification informed by use of multivariate numerical tools?
expert_system	string Description of any automated expert system used in classification
class_publication_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the publication wherein the observation was classified
class_publication_rf_label	string Reference label for the publication wherein the observation was classified
class_notes	string Notes about the classification event by the parties participating in the event. This might include the purpose or rationale for the classification.

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_class_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cl_code": "cl.1",
"ob_code": "ob.1",
"class_start_date": "2006-05-30",
"class_stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"inspection": false,
"table_analysis": false,
"multivariate_analysis": false,
"expert_system": "DCA, UPGMA",
"class_publication_rf_code": "rf.1",
"class_publication_rf_label": "NVC 2004",
"class_notes": "Abies Grandis Alliance"
}
]
}

Community interpretations

Operations related to community interpretations

Get community interpretation

Retrieve a single community interpretation using its ci_code.

path Parameters

ci_code

required

string

Example: ci.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ci_code	string VegBank community interpretation identifier
cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
class_fit	string Indicates the degree of fit with the community concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188
class_confidence	string Indicates the degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the classification or the sufficiency of information about the plot (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
comm_authority_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the reference from which information on the interpreted community concept was obtained during the classification event
notes	string Notes pertaining to the classification analysis and decision
type	boolean Is this assignment the type description for the community concept, as indicated in the publication referenced in community classification class_publication?
nomenclatural_type	boolean Is this a typal plot for the Braun-Blanquet community name?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ci_code": "ci.1",
"cl_code": "cl.1",
"cc_code": "cc.1",
"class_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"class_confidence": "High",
"comm_authority_rf_code": "rf.1",
"notes": "no confidence associated with this classification",
"type": false,
"nomenclatural_type": false
}
]
}

Get community interpretations by cl

Retrieve a paginated collection of community interpretations associated with the specified community classification (using its cl_code).

path Parameters

cl_code

required

string

Example: cl.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ci_code	string VegBank community interpretation identifier
cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
class_fit	string Indicates the degree of fit with the community concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188
class_confidence	string Indicates the degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the classification or the sufficiency of information about the plot (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
comm_authority_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the reference from which information on the interpreted community concept was obtained during the classification event
notes	string Notes pertaining to the classification analysis and decision
type	boolean Is this assignment the type description for the community concept, as indicated in the publication referenced in community classification class_publication?
nomenclatural_type	boolean Is this a typal plot for the Braun-Blanquet community name?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ci_code": "ci.1",
"cl_code": "cl.1",
"cc_code": "cc.1",
"class_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"class_confidence": "High",
"comm_authority_rf_code": "rf.1",
"notes": "no confidence associated with this classification",
"type": false,
"nomenclatural_type": false
}
]
}

Get community interpretations by ob

Retrieve a paginated collection of community interpretations associated with the specified plot observation (using its ob_code).

path Parameters

ob_code

required

string

Example: ob.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ci_code	string VegBank community interpretation identifier
cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
class_fit	string Indicates the degree of fit with the community concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188
class_confidence	string Indicates the degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the classification or the sufficiency of information about the plot (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
comm_authority_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the reference from which information on the interpreted community concept was obtained during the classification event
notes	string Notes pertaining to the classification analysis and decision
type	boolean Is this assignment the type description for the community concept, as indicated in the publication referenced in community classification class_publication?
nomenclatural_type	boolean Is this a typal plot for the Braun-Blanquet community name?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ci_code": "ci.1",
"cl_code": "cl.1",
"cc_code": "cc.1",
"class_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"class_confidence": "High",
"comm_authority_rf_code": "rf.1",
"notes": "no confidence associated with this classification",
"type": false,
"nomenclatural_type": false
}
]
}

Get community interpretations by cc

Retrieve a paginated collection of community interpretations using the specified community concept (using its cc_code).

path Parameters

cc_code

required

string

Example: cc.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ci_code	string VegBank community interpretation identifier
cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
class_fit	string Indicates the degree of fit with the community concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188
class_confidence	string Indicates the degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the classification or the sufficiency of information about the plot (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
comm_authority_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the reference from which information on the interpreted community concept was obtained during the classification event
notes	string Notes pertaining to the classification analysis and decision
type	boolean Is this assignment the type description for the community concept, as indicated in the publication referenced in community classification class_publication?
nomenclatural_type	boolean Is this a typal plot for the Braun-Blanquet community name?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ci_code": "ci.1",
"cl_code": "cl.1",
"cc_code": "cc.1",
"class_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"class_confidence": "High",
"comm_authority_rf_code": "rf.1",
"notes": "no confidence associated with this classification",
"type": false,
"nomenclatural_type": false
}
]
}

Get all community interpretations

Retrieve a paginated collection of all community interpretations recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ci_code	string VegBank community interpretation identifier
cl_code	string VegBank community classification identifier
cc_code	string VegBank community concept identifier
class_fit	string Indicates the degree of fit with the community concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188
class_confidence	string Indicates the degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the classification or the sufficiency of information about the plot (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
comm_authority_rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the reference from which information on the interpreted community concept was obtained during the classification event
notes	string Notes pertaining to the classification analysis and decision
type	boolean Is this assignment the type description for the community concept, as indicated in the publication referenced in community classification class_publication?
nomenclatural_type	boolean Is this a typal plot for the Braun-Blanquet community name?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

comm_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ci_code": "ci.1",
"cl_code": "cl.1",
"cc_code": "cc.1",
"class_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"class_confidence": "High",
"comm_authority_rf_code": "rf.1",
"notes": "no confidence associated with this classification",
"type": false,
"nomenclatural_type": false
}
]
}

Plant concepts

Operations related to plant concepts

Get plant concept

Retrieve a single plant concept using its pc_code.

path Parameters

pc_code

required

string

Example: pc.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
plant_name	string Plant name, as recorded on the plant concept
plant_code	string Code for the plant concept, derived from a plant usage record of class system 'Code'
plant_description	string Description of the plant concept by the party contributing the concept
concept_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the plant was identified by a name.
concept_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the plant was identified by a name.
status_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the status was reported
status_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the status was reported
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
plant_level	string Level in the taxonomic hierarchy to which the plant concept belongs.
status	string Status of the concept by the party (accepted, not accepted, undetermined)
start_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party started.
stop_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party ended.
current_accepted	boolean Is this concept currently accepted by at least one party?
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party that made the status assignment
party_label	string Name/label for the party that made the status assignment
plant_party_comments	string Comments by party providing rationale for status assignment
parent_pc_code	string VegBank identifier of the parent concept in the taxonomic hierarchy. For example, if this concept were at the species level, the parent would be a concept that is the parent genus level.
parent_name	string Name of the parent concept in the taxonomic hierarchy.

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plant_concept_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"pc_code": "pc.1",
"plant_name": "Acer rubrum",
"plant_code": "ACRU",
"plant_description": "Named for the Cahaba River",
"concept_rf_code": "rf.1",
"concept_rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002",
"status_rf_code": "rf.1",
"status_rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002",
"obs_count": 17,
"plant_level": "Genus",
"status": "accepted",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"current_accepted": true,
"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "USDA-NRCS-PLANTS (organization)",
"plant_party_comments": "present at plants.usda.gov as a higher level taxon",
"parent_pc_code": "pc.1",
"parent_name": "Acer"
}
]
}

Get plant concepts by to

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of the plant concepts applied via interpretation to the specified taxon observation (using its to_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

to_code

required

string

Example: to.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "plant_name" "+plant_name" "-plant_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `plant_name` - Sort by plant name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=plant_name` - Sort by plant name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+plant_name` - Sort by plant name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
plant_name	string Plant name, as recorded on the plant concept
plant_code	string Code for the plant concept, derived from a plant usage record of class system 'Code'
plant_description	string Description of the plant concept by the party contributing the concept
concept_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the plant was identified by a name.
concept_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the plant was identified by a name.
status_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the status was reported
status_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the status was reported
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
plant_level	string Level in the taxonomic hierarchy to which the plant concept belongs.
status	string Status of the concept by the party (accepted, not accepted, undetermined)
start_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party started.
stop_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party ended.
current_accepted	boolean Is this concept currently accepted by at least one party?
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party that made the status assignment
party_label	string Name/label for the party that made the status assignment
plant_party_comments	string Comments by party providing rationale for status assignment
parent_pc_code	string VegBank identifier of the parent concept in the taxonomic hierarchy. For example, if this concept were at the species level, the parent would be a concept that is the parent genus level.
parent_name	string Name of the parent concept in the taxonomic hierarchy.

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plant_concept_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"pc_code": "pc.1",
"plant_name": "Acer rubrum",
"plant_code": "ACRU",
"plant_description": "Named for the Cahaba River",
"concept_rf_code": "rf.1",
"concept_rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002",
"status_rf_code": "rf.1",
"status_rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002",
"obs_count": 17,
"plant_level": "Genus",
"status": "accepted",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"current_accepted": true,
"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "USDA-NRCS-PLANTS (organization)",
"plant_party_comments": "present at plants.usda.gov as a higher level taxon",
"parent_pc_code": "pc.1",
"parent_name": "Acer"
}
]
}

Get plant concepts by ob

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of all plant concepts associated with the specified plot observation (using its ob_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

ob_code

required

string

Example: ob.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "plant_name" "+plant_name" "-plant_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `plant_name` - Sort by plant name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=plant_name` - Sort by plant name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+plant_name` - Sort by plant name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
plant_name	string Plant name, as recorded on the plant concept
plant_code	string Code for the plant concept, derived from a plant usage record of class system 'Code'
plant_description	string Description of the plant concept by the party contributing the concept
concept_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the plant was identified by a name.
concept_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the plant was identified by a name.
status_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the status was reported
status_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the status was reported
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
plant_level	string Level in the taxonomic hierarchy to which the plant concept belongs.
status	string Status of the concept by the party (accepted, not accepted, undetermined)
start_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party started.
stop_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party ended.
current_accepted	boolean Is this concept currently accepted by at least one party?
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party that made the status assignment
party_label	string Name/label for the party that made the status assignment
plant_party_comments	string Comments by party providing rationale for status assignment
parent_pc_code	string VegBank identifier of the parent concept in the taxonomic hierarchy. For example, if this concept were at the species level, the parent would be a concept that is the parent genus level.
parent_name	string Name of the parent concept in the taxonomic hierarchy.

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plant_concept_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"pc_code": "pc.1",
"plant_name": "Acer rubrum",
"plant_code": "ACRU",
"plant_description": "Named for the Cahaba River",
"concept_rf_code": "rf.1",
"concept_rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002",
"status_rf_code": "rf.1",
"status_rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002",
"obs_count": 17,
"plant_level": "Genus",
"status": "accepted",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"current_accepted": true,
"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "USDA-NRCS-PLANTS (organization)",
"plant_party_comments": "present at plants.usda.gov as a higher level taxon",
"parent_pc_code": "pc.1",
"parent_name": "Acer"
}
]
}

Get all plant concepts

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of plant concepts representing all concepts stored in VegBank, or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "plant_name" "+plant_name" "-plant_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `plant_name` - Sort by plant name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=plant_name` - Sort by plant name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+plant_name` - Sort by plant name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
plant_name	string Plant name, as recorded on the plant concept
plant_code	string Code for the plant concept, derived from a plant usage record of class system 'Code'
plant_description	string Description of the plant concept by the party contributing the concept
concept_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the plant was identified by a name.
concept_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the plant was identified by a name.
status_rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference in which the status was reported
status_rf_label	string Name/label for the reference in which the status was reported
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
plant_level	string Level in the taxonomic hierarchy to which the plant concept belongs.
status	string Status of the concept by the party (accepted, not accepted, undetermined)
start_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party started.
stop_date	string <date> Date for which the status assignment by the party ended.
current_accepted	boolean Is this concept currently accepted by at least one party?
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party that made the status assignment
party_label	string Name/label for the party that made the status assignment
plant_party_comments	string Comments by party providing rationale for status assignment
parent_pc_code	string VegBank identifier of the parent concept in the taxonomic hierarchy. For example, if this concept were at the species level, the parent would be a concept that is the parent genus level.
parent_name	string Name of the parent concept in the taxonomic hierarchy.

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

plant_concept_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"pc_code": "pc.1",
"plant_name": "Acer rubrum",
"plant_code": "ACRU",
"plant_description": "Named for the Cahaba River",
"concept_rf_code": "rf.1",
"concept_rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002",
"status_rf_code": "rf.1",
"status_rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002",
"obs_count": 17,
"plant_level": "Genus",
"status": "accepted",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"current_accepted": true,
"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "USDA-NRCS-PLANTS (organization)",
"plant_party_comments": "present at plants.usda.gov as a higher level taxon",
"parent_pc_code": "pc.1",
"parent_name": "Acer"
}
]
}

Upload plant concepts

status: planned

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Array

object (tbd)

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Array

string

counts and vb_codes of newly created records

Response samples

200
403
500

Content type

application/json

["string"
]

Taxon observations

Operations related to taxon observations

Get taxon observation

Retrieve a single taxon observation using its to_code.

path Parameters

to_code

required

string

Example: to.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
ob_code	string VegBank plot observation identifier
author_plant_name	string Name provided by the plot author to refer to a taxon observed within the plot
int_curr_plant_code	string Plant code for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_common	string Common name for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_pc_code	string VegBank identifier for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_sci_full	string Scientific name (with authors) for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_sci_name_no_auth	string Scientific name (without authors) for the current interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_code	string Plant code for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_common	string Common name for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_pc_code	string VegBank identifier for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_sci_full	string Scientific name (with authors) for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_sci_name_no_auth	string Scientific name (without authors) for the original interpreted plant concept
taxon_inference_area	number <float> Area in m2 used to infer the presence of a given taxon. Generally this should be equal to the plot-observation taxon_inference_area, but at times this area may be larger or smaller for a specific taxon. RESERVED VALUE: -1 is used to indicate that no known plot boundaries were used when recording this species on the plot. That is, this species may occur outside the plot area as indicated in the plot and observation tables.
rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference serving as the authority for the taxon used by the plot author; if the authority is unknown, the author of the plot is the authority
rf_label	string Name/label of the reference serving as the authority for the taxon used by the plot author; if the authority is unknown, the author of the plot is the authority

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_obs_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"to_code": "to.1",
"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_plant_name": "Lichen",
"int_curr_plant_code": "QUTU2",
"int_curr_plant_common": "Sonoran scrub oak",
"int_curr_pc_code": "pc.1",
"int_curr_plant_sci_full": "Quercus turbinella Greene",
"int_curr_plant_sci_name_no_auth": "Quercus turbinella",
"int_orig_plant_code": "QUTU2",
"int_orig_plant_common": "Sonoran scrub oak",
"int_orig_pc_code": "pc.1",
"int_orig_plant_sci_full": "Quercus turbinella Greene",
"int_orig_plant_sci_name_no_auth": "Quercus turbinella",
"taxon_inference_area": 405,
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002"
}
]
}

Get taxon observations by ob

Retrieve a paginated collection of taxon observations associated with the specified plot observation (using its ob_code).

path Parameters

ob_code

required

string

Example: ob.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
ob_code	string VegBank plot observation identifier
author_plant_name	string Name provided by the plot author to refer to a taxon observed within the plot
int_curr_plant_code	string Plant code for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_common	string Common name for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_pc_code	string VegBank identifier for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_sci_full	string Scientific name (with authors) for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_sci_name_no_auth	string Scientific name (without authors) for the current interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_code	string Plant code for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_common	string Common name for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_pc_code	string VegBank identifier for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_sci_full	string Scientific name (with authors) for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_sci_name_no_auth	string Scientific name (without authors) for the original interpreted plant concept
taxon_inference_area	number <float> Area in m2 used to infer the presence of a given taxon. Generally this should be equal to the plot-observation taxon_inference_area, but at times this area may be larger or smaller for a specific taxon. RESERVED VALUE: -1 is used to indicate that no known plot boundaries were used when recording this species on the plot. That is, this species may occur outside the plot area as indicated in the plot and observation tables.
rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference serving as the authority for the taxon used by the plot author; if the authority is unknown, the author of the plot is the authority
rf_label	string Name/label of the reference serving as the authority for the taxon used by the plot author; if the authority is unknown, the author of the plot is the authority

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_obs_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"to_code": "to.1",
"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_plant_name": "Lichen",
"int_curr_plant_code": "QUTU2",
"int_curr_plant_common": "Sonoran scrub oak",
"int_curr_pc_code": "pc.1",
"int_curr_plant_sci_full": "Quercus turbinella Greene",
"int_curr_plant_sci_name_no_auth": "Quercus turbinella",
"int_orig_plant_code": "QUTU2",
"int_orig_plant_common": "Sonoran scrub oak",
"int_orig_pc_code": "pc.1",
"int_orig_plant_sci_full": "Quercus turbinella Greene",
"int_orig_plant_sci_name_no_auth": "Quercus turbinella",
"taxon_inference_area": 405,
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002"
}
]
}

Get taxon observations by pc

Retrieve a paginated collection of taxon observations interpreted to the specified plant concept (using its pc_code).

path Parameters

pc_code

required

string

Example: pc.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
ob_code	string VegBank plot observation identifier
author_plant_name	string Name provided by the plot author to refer to a taxon observed within the plot
int_curr_plant_code	string Plant code for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_common	string Common name for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_pc_code	string VegBank identifier for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_sci_full	string Scientific name (with authors) for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_sci_name_no_auth	string Scientific name (without authors) for the current interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_code	string Plant code for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_common	string Common name for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_pc_code	string VegBank identifier for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_sci_full	string Scientific name (with authors) for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_sci_name_no_auth	string Scientific name (without authors) for the original interpreted plant concept
taxon_inference_area	number <float> Area in m2 used to infer the presence of a given taxon. Generally this should be equal to the plot-observation taxon_inference_area, but at times this area may be larger or smaller for a specific taxon. RESERVED VALUE: -1 is used to indicate that no known plot boundaries were used when recording this species on the plot. That is, this species may occur outside the plot area as indicated in the plot and observation tables.
rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference serving as the authority for the taxon used by the plot author; if the authority is unknown, the author of the plot is the authority
rf_label	string Name/label of the reference serving as the authority for the taxon used by the plot author; if the authority is unknown, the author of the plot is the authority

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_obs_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"to_code": "to.1",
"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_plant_name": "Lichen",
"int_curr_plant_code": "QUTU2",
"int_curr_plant_common": "Sonoran scrub oak",
"int_curr_pc_code": "pc.1",
"int_curr_plant_sci_full": "Quercus turbinella Greene",
"int_curr_plant_sci_name_no_auth": "Quercus turbinella",
"int_orig_plant_code": "QUTU2",
"int_orig_plant_common": "Sonoran scrub oak",
"int_orig_pc_code": "pc.1",
"int_orig_plant_sci_full": "Quercus turbinella Greene",
"int_orig_plant_sci_name_no_auth": "Quercus turbinella",
"taxon_inference_area": 405,
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002"
}
]
}

Get all taxon observations

Retrieve a paginated collection of all taxon observations recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
ob_code	string VegBank plot observation identifier
author_plant_name	string Name provided by the plot author to refer to a taxon observed within the plot
int_curr_plant_code	string Plant code for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_common	string Common name for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_pc_code	string VegBank identifier for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_sci_full	string Scientific name (with authors) for the current interpreted plant concept
int_curr_plant_sci_name_no_auth	string Scientific name (without authors) for the current interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_code	string Plant code for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_common	string Common name for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_pc_code	string VegBank identifier for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_sci_full	string Scientific name (with authors) for the original interpreted plant concept
int_orig_plant_sci_name_no_auth	string Scientific name (without authors) for the original interpreted plant concept
taxon_inference_area	number <float> Area in m2 used to infer the presence of a given taxon. Generally this should be equal to the plot-observation taxon_inference_area, but at times this area may be larger or smaller for a specific taxon. RESERVED VALUE: -1 is used to indicate that no known plot boundaries were used when recording this species on the plot. That is, this species may occur outside the plot area as indicated in the plot and observation tables.
rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the reference serving as the authority for the taxon used by the plot author; if the authority is unknown, the author of the plot is the authority
rf_label	string Name/label of the reference serving as the authority for the taxon used by the plot author; if the authority is unknown, the author of the plot is the authority

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_obs_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"to_code": "to.1",
"ob_code": "ob.1",
"author_plant_name": "Lichen",
"int_curr_plant_code": "QUTU2",
"int_curr_plant_common": "Sonoran scrub oak",
"int_curr_pc_code": "pc.1",
"int_curr_plant_sci_full": "Quercus turbinella Greene",
"int_curr_plant_sci_name_no_auth": "Quercus turbinella",
"int_orig_plant_code": "QUTU2",
"int_orig_plant_common": "Sonoran scrub oak",
"int_orig_pc_code": "pc.1",
"int_orig_plant_sci_full": "Quercus turbinella Greene",
"int_orig_plant_sci_name_no_auth": "Quercus turbinella",
"taxon_inference_area": 405,
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "USDA Plants 2002"
}
]
}

Taxon interpretations

Operations related to taxon interpretations

Get taxon interpretation

Retrieve a single taxon interpretation using its ti_code.

path Parameters

ti_code

required

string

Example: ti.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ti_code	string VegBank taxon interpretation identifier
to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
interpretation_date	string <date> Date when the interpretation was made.
interpretation_type	string Categories for the interpretation (e.g., uthor, computer generated, simplified for comparative analysis, correction, finer resolution)
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party making the interpretation
rf_code	string VegBank Reference identifier for the publication in which the interpretation was formally made, or in which the plot was used in a formal analysis
taxon_fit	string Degree of fit with the plant concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188.
taxon_confidence	string Degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the taxon or the sufficiency of information about the plant (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
collection_number	string The collector's identification code for the voucher
group_type	string The type of group formed for this taxon interpretation
notes	string Notes that the interpreter has included with the interpretation (generally, the reason for the interpretation)
notes_public	boolean Have public notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
notes_mgt	boolean Have non-public management notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
is_orig	boolean Is this the original interpretation?
is_curr	boolean Is this the current interpretation?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ti_code": "ti.1",
"to_code": "to.1",
"pc_code": "pc.1",
"interpretation_date": "2006-05-30",
"interpretation_type": "Author",
"py_code": "py.1",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"taxon_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"taxon_confidence": "High",
"collection_number": "091907F",
"group_type": "union",
"notes": "Identified from specimen",
"notes_public": false,
"notes_mgt": false,
"is_orig": true,
"is_curr": true
}
]
}

Get taxon interpretations by pc

Retrieve a paginated collection of taxon interpretations using the specified plant concept (using its pc_code).

path Parameters

pc_code

required

string

Example: pc.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "comm_name" "+comm_name" "-comm_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `comm_name` - Sort by community name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+comm_name` - Sort by community name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ti_code	string VegBank taxon interpretation identifier
to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
interpretation_date	string <date> Date when the interpretation was made.
interpretation_type	string Categories for the interpretation (e.g., uthor, computer generated, simplified for comparative analysis, correction, finer resolution)
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party making the interpretation
rf_code	string VegBank Reference identifier for the publication in which the interpretation was formally made, or in which the plot was used in a formal analysis
taxon_fit	string Degree of fit with the plant concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188.
taxon_confidence	string Degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the taxon or the sufficiency of information about the plant (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
collection_number	string The collector's identification code for the voucher
group_type	string The type of group formed for this taxon interpretation
notes	string Notes that the interpreter has included with the interpretation (generally, the reason for the interpretation)
notes_public	boolean Have public notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
notes_mgt	boolean Have non-public management notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
is_orig	boolean Is this the original interpretation?
is_curr	boolean Is this the current interpretation?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ti_code": "ti.1",
"to_code": "to.1",
"pc_code": "pc.1",
"interpretation_date": "2006-05-30",
"interpretation_type": "Author",
"py_code": "py.1",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"taxon_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"taxon_confidence": "High",
"collection_number": "091907F",
"group_type": "union",
"notes": "Identified from specimen",
"notes_public": false,
"notes_mgt": false,
"is_orig": true,
"is_curr": true
}
]
}

Get taxon interpretations by ob

Retrieve a paginated collection of taxon interpretations applied to taxa observed in the specified plot observation (using its ob_code).

path Parameters

ob_code

required

string

Example: ob.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ti_code	string VegBank taxon interpretation identifier
to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
interpretation_date	string <date> Date when the interpretation was made.
interpretation_type	string Categories for the interpretation (e.g., uthor, computer generated, simplified for comparative analysis, correction, finer resolution)
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party making the interpretation
rf_code	string VegBank Reference identifier for the publication in which the interpretation was formally made, or in which the plot was used in a formal analysis
taxon_fit	string Degree of fit with the plant concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188.
taxon_confidence	string Degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the taxon or the sufficiency of information about the plant (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
collection_number	string The collector's identification code for the voucher
group_type	string The type of group formed for this taxon interpretation
notes	string Notes that the interpreter has included with the interpretation (generally, the reason for the interpretation)
notes_public	boolean Have public notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
notes_mgt	boolean Have non-public management notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
is_orig	boolean Is this the original interpretation?
is_curr	boolean Is this the current interpretation?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ti_code": "ti.1",
"to_code": "to.1",
"pc_code": "pc.1",
"interpretation_date": "2006-05-30",
"interpretation_type": "Author",
"py_code": "py.1",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"taxon_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"taxon_confidence": "High",
"collection_number": "091907F",
"group_type": "union",
"notes": "Identified from specimen",
"notes_public": false,
"notes_mgt": false,
"is_orig": true,
"is_curr": true
}
]
}

Get taxon interpretations by to

Retrieve a paginated collection of taxon interpretations for the specified taxon observation (using its to_code).

path Parameters

to_code

required

string

Example: to.1

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ti_code	string VegBank taxon interpretation identifier
to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
interpretation_date	string <date> Date when the interpretation was made.
interpretation_type	string Categories for the interpretation (e.g., uthor, computer generated, simplified for comparative analysis, correction, finer resolution)
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party making the interpretation
rf_code	string VegBank Reference identifier for the publication in which the interpretation was formally made, or in which the plot was used in a formal analysis
taxon_fit	string Degree of fit with the plant concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188.
taxon_confidence	string Degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the taxon or the sufficiency of information about the plant (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
collection_number	string The collector's identification code for the voucher
group_type	string The type of group formed for this taxon interpretation
notes	string Notes that the interpreter has included with the interpretation (generally, the reason for the interpretation)
notes_public	boolean Have public notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
notes_mgt	boolean Have non-public management notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
is_orig	boolean Is this the original interpretation?
is_curr	boolean Is this the current interpretation?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ti_code": "ti.1",
"to_code": "to.1",
"pc_code": "pc.1",
"interpretation_date": "2006-05-30",
"interpretation_type": "Author",
"py_code": "py.1",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"taxon_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"taxon_confidence": "High",
"collection_number": "091907F",
"group_type": "union",
"notes": "Identified from specimen",
"notes_public": false,
"notes_mgt": false,
"is_orig": true,
"is_curr": true
}
]
}

Get all taxon interpretations

Retrieve a paginated collection of all taxon interpretations recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

detail	string Default: "full" Enum: "minimal" "full" Level of detail for the response: `minimal`: Returns basic fields only `full`: Returns more fields
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

ti_code	string VegBank taxon interpretation identifier
to_code	string VegBank taxon observation identifier
pc_code	string VegBank plant concept identifier
interpretation_date	string <date> Date when the interpretation was made.
interpretation_type	string Categories for the interpretation (e.g., uthor, computer generated, simplified for comparative analysis, correction, finer resolution)
py_code	string VegBank identifier for the party making the interpretation
rf_code	string VegBank Reference identifier for the publication in which the interpretation was formally made, or in which the plot was used in a formal analysis
taxon_fit	string Degree of fit with the plant concept being assigned. Values derive from Gopal, S., and Woodcock, C. (1994), Theory and methods for accuracy assessment of thematic maps using fuzzy sets. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 60(2):181-188.
taxon_confidence	string Degree of confidence of the interpreter(s) in the interpretation made. This can reflect the level of familiarity with the taxon or the sufficiency of information about the plant (e.g., High, Moderate, Low)
collection_number	string The collector's identification code for the voucher
group_type	string The type of group formed for this taxon interpretation
notes	string Notes that the interpreter has included with the interpretation (generally, the reason for the interpretation)
notes_public	boolean Have public notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
notes_mgt	boolean Have non-public management notes pertaining to this plot been recorded in Vegbank?
is_orig	boolean Is this the original interpretation?
is_curr	boolean Is this the current interpretation?

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

taxon_interp_minimal

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"ti_code": "ti.1",
"to_code": "to.1",
"pc_code": "pc.1",
"interpretation_date": "2006-05-30",
"interpretation_type": "Author",
"py_code": "py.1",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"taxon_fit": "Reasonable or acceptable answer",
"taxon_confidence": "High",
"collection_number": "091907F",
"group_type": "union",
"notes": "Identified from specimen",
"notes_public": false,
"notes_mgt": false,
"is_orig": true,
"is_curr": true
}
]
}

Cover methods

Operations related to cover methods

Get cover method

Retrieve a single cover method using its cm_code.

path Parameters

cm_code

required

string

Example: cm.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cm_code	string VegBank cover method identifier
cover_type	string Name of the coverclass method (e.g., Braun-Blanquet, Barkman, Domin, Daubenmire, Carolina Vegetation Survey, etc.)
cover_estimation_method	string How cover is estimated on the observation
rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the defining cover method reference
rf_label	string Name/label for the defining cover method reference

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

cover_method_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cm_code": "cm.1",
"cover_type": "Braun-Blanquet",
"cover_estimation_method": "Canopy cover",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "TurboVeg1.98a"
}
]
}

Get all cover methods

Retrieve a paginated collection of all cover methods recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

cm_code	string VegBank cover method identifier
cover_type	string Name of the coverclass method (e.g., Braun-Blanquet, Barkman, Domin, Daubenmire, Carolina Vegetation Survey, etc.)
cover_estimation_method	string How cover is estimated on the observation
rf_code	string VegBank identifier for the defining cover method reference
rf_label	string Name/label for the defining cover method reference

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

cover_method_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"cm_code": "cm.1",
"cover_type": "Braun-Blanquet",
"cover_estimation_method": "Canopy cover",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "TurboVeg1.98a"
}
]
}

Upload cover methods

status: beta

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Array

object (tbd)

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Array

string

counts and vb_codes of newly created records

Response samples

200
403
500

Content type

application/json

["string"
]

Stratum methods

Operations related to stratum methods

Get stratum method

Retrieve a single stratum method using its sm_code.

path Parameters

sm_code

required

string

Example: sm.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

sm_code	string VegBank stratum method identifier
stratum_method_name	string Name of the stratum method (e.g., Braun-Blanquet, TNC-ABI, NC Vegetation Survey #1, NC Vegetation Survey #2, etc.)
stratum_method_description	string Describes the general methods used for strata. For example, this field should distinguish as to whether strata are defined as including all foliage on plants that predominantly occupy the stratum regardless of the height of that foliage, or only the foliage that actually occurs within a specified vertical slice of the community.
stratum_assignment	string The way that an individual's cover is assigned to the different stratum. Some methodologies allow an individul to span multiple strata and have stratum cover values in each stratum. Other methodologies require that all cover from an individual be assigned to the upper-most stratum. Further information about the specifics of stratum methodologies that deviate from the standard practice of the stratum method should be described in the plot observation method narrative.
rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the publication that defines the stratum method
rf_label	string Name/label for the publication that defines the stratum method

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

stratum_method_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"sm_code": "sm.1",
"stratum_method_name": "TurboVeg",
"stratum_method_description": "Standard strata used in the TurboVeg application",
"stratum_assignment": "predominant stratum",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "TurboVeg1.98a"
}
]
}

Get all stratum methods

Retrieve a paginated collection of all stratum methods recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

One of

count

integer

Total matching record count

Array of objects

Data records

Array

sm_code	string VegBank stratum method identifier
stratum_method_name	string Name of the stratum method (e.g., Braun-Blanquet, TNC-ABI, NC Vegetation Survey #1, NC Vegetation Survey #2, etc.)
stratum_method_description	string Describes the general methods used for strata. For example, this field should distinguish as to whether strata are defined as including all foliage on plants that predominantly occupy the stratum regardless of the height of that foliage, or only the foliage that actually occurs within a specified vertical slice of the community.
stratum_assignment	string The way that an individual's cover is assigned to the different stratum. Some methodologies allow an individul to span multiple strata and have stratum cover values in each stratum. Other methodologies require that all cover from an individual be assigned to the upper-most stratum. Further information about the specifics of stratum methodologies that deviate from the standard practice of the stratum method should be described in the plot observation method narrative.
rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier for the publication that defines the stratum method
rf_label	string Name/label for the publication that defines the stratum method

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

Example

stratum_method_full

{"count": 115000,
"data": [{"sm_code": "sm.1",
"stratum_method_name": "TurboVeg",
"stratum_method_description": "Standard strata used in the TurboVeg application",
"stratum_assignment": "predominant stratum",
"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "TurboVeg1.98a"
}
]
}

Upload stratum methods

status: beta

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Array

object (tbd)

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Array

string

counts and vb_codes of newly created records

Response samples

200
403
500

Content type

application/json

["string"
]

Parties

Operations related to parties

Get party

Retrieve a single party using its py_code.

path Parameters

py_code

required

string

Example: py.1

query Parameters

create_parquet

boolean

Default: false

If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

py_code	string VegBank party identifier
party_label	string Name/label for the party
salutation	string Salutation used in addressing an individual with a particular title
given_name	string All names, except the surname, of the individual associated with the resource. Possible usages include: first name and middle name, first name and middle initials, first name, etc.
middle_name	string Middle name or initial, if any
surname	string Name shared in common to identify the members of a family, as distinguished the given name
organization_name	string Full name of the organization, which may be the party itself if this is an organization-type party record, or else is the organization that the party is associated with if this is a person-type party record
contact_instructions	string Instructions for contacting a party
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"salutation": "Dr.",
"given_name": "Jo R.",
"middle_name": "R.",
"surname": "Smith",
"organization_name": "NatureServe",
"contact_instructions": "contact the contributor at specified email",
"obs_count": 17
}

Get parties by ob

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of parties associated with the specified plot observation (using its ob_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

ob_code

required

string

Example: ob.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "surname" "+surname" "-surname" "organization_name" "+organization_name" "-organization_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `surname` - Sort by surname `organization_name` - Sort by organization name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=surname` - Sort by surname ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+organization_name` - Sort by organization name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

py_code	string VegBank party identifier
party_label	string Name/label for the party
salutation	string Salutation used in addressing an individual with a particular title
given_name	string All names, except the surname, of the individual associated with the resource. Possible usages include: first name and middle name, first name and middle initials, first name, etc.
middle_name	string Middle name or initial, if any
surname	string Name shared in common to identify the members of a family, as distinguished the given name
organization_name	string Full name of the organization, which may be the party itself if this is an organization-type party record, or else is the organization that the party is associated with if this is a person-type party record
contact_instructions	string Instructions for contacting a party
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"salutation": "Dr.",
"given_name": "Jo R.",
"middle_name": "R.",
"surname": "Smith",
"organization_name": "NatureServe",
"contact_instructions": "contact the contributor at specified email",
"obs_count": 17
}

Get parties by cl

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of parties associated with the specified community classification (using its cl_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

cl_code

required

string

Example: cl.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "surname" "+surname" "-surname" "organization_name" "+organization_name" "-organization_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `surname` - Sort by surname `organization_name` - Sort by organization name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=surname` - Sort by surname ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+organization_name` - Sort by organization name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

py_code	string VegBank party identifier
party_label	string Name/label for the party
salutation	string Salutation used in addressing an individual with a particular title
given_name	string All names, except the surname, of the individual associated with the resource. Possible usages include: first name and middle name, first name and middle initials, first name, etc.
middle_name	string Middle name or initial, if any
surname	string Name shared in common to identify the members of a family, as distinguished the given name
organization_name	string Full name of the organization, which may be the party itself if this is an organization-type party record, or else is the organization that the party is associated with if this is a person-type party record
contact_instructions	string Instructions for contacting a party
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"salutation": "Dr.",
"given_name": "Jo R.",
"middle_name": "R.",
"surname": "Smith",
"organization_name": "NatureServe",
"contact_instructions": "contact the contributor at specified email",
"obs_count": 17
}

Get parties by pj

Retrieve a paginated and sorted collection of parties associated with the specified project (using its pj_code), or a subset thereof based on a specified search query.

path Parameters

pj_code

required

string

Example: pj.1

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "surname" "+surname" "-surname" "organization_name" "+organization_name" "-organization_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `surname` - Sort by surname `organization_name` - Sort by organization name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=surname` - Sort by surname ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+organization_name` - Sort by organization name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

py_code	string VegBank party identifier
party_label	string Name/label for the party
salutation	string Salutation used in addressing an individual with a particular title
given_name	string All names, except the surname, of the individual associated with the resource. Possible usages include: first name and middle name, first name and middle initials, first name, etc.
middle_name	string Middle name or initial, if any
surname	string Name shared in common to identify the members of a family, as distinguished the given name
organization_name	string Full name of the organization, which may be the party itself if this is an organization-type party record, or else is the organization that the party is associated with if this is a person-type party record
contact_instructions	string Instructions for contacting a party
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"salutation": "Dr.",
"given_name": "Jo R.",
"middle_name": "R.",
"surname": "Smith",
"organization_name": "NatureServe",
"contact_instructions": "contact the contributor at specified email",
"obs_count": 17
}

Get all parties

Retrieve a paginated collection of all parties recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "surname" "+surname" "-surname" "organization_name" "+organization_name" "-organization_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `surname` - Sort by surname `organization_name` - Sort by organization name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=surname` - Sort by surname ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+organization_name` - Sort by organization name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

py_code	string VegBank party identifier
party_label	string Name/label for the party
salutation	string Salutation used in addressing an individual with a particular title
given_name	string All names, except the surname, of the individual associated with the resource. Possible usages include: first name and middle name, first name and middle initials, first name, etc.
middle_name	string Middle name or initial, if any
surname	string Name shared in common to identify the members of a family, as distinguished the given name
organization_name	string Full name of the organization, which may be the party itself if this is an organization-type party record, or else is the organization that the party is associated with if this is a person-type party record
contact_instructions	string Instructions for contacting a party
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"py_code": "py.1",
"party_label": "NatureServe (organization)",
"salutation": "Dr.",
"given_name": "Jo R.",
"middle_name": "R.",
"surname": "Smith",
"organization_name": "NatureServe",
"contact_instructions": "contact the contributor at specified email",
"obs_count": 17
}

Upload parties

status: beta

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Array

object (tbd)

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Array

string

counts and vb_codes of newly created records

Response samples

200
403
500

Content type

application/json

["string"
]

Projects

Operations related to projects

Get project

Retrieve a single project using its pj_code.

path Parameters

pj_code

required

string

Example: pj.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

pj_code	string VegBank project identifier
project_name	string Project name as defined by the principal investigator
project_description	string Short description of the project including the original purpose for conducting the project
start_date	string <date> Project start date
stop_date	string <date> Project stop date
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
last_plot_added_date	string <date> Date a plot observation was last added to this project

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"pj_code": "pj.1",
"project_name": "Pawnee Grassland Classification",
"project_description": "Classification of the Pawnee National Grassland",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"obs_count": 17,
"last_plot_added_date": "2006-05-30"
}

Get all projects

Retrieve a paginated collection of all projects recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
sort	string Default: "default" Enum: "default" "+default" "-default" "project_name" "+project_name" "-project_name" "obs_count" "+obs_count" "-obs_count" Example: sort=-obs_count Sort order for results. Prefix with `-` for descending order or `+` for ascending order. Ascending order is the default if no prefix is provided. Available sort fields: `default` - Default sort order `project_name` - Sort by project name `obs_count` - Sort by observation count Examples: `sort=project_name` - Sort by project name ascending `sort=-obs_count` - Sort by observation count descending `sort=+project_name` - Sort by project name ascending (explicit)
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

pj_code	string VegBank project identifier
project_name	string Project name as defined by the principal investigator
project_description	string Short description of the project including the original purpose for conducting the project
start_date	string <date> Project start date
stop_date	string <date> Project stop date
obs_count	integer Number of plot observations associated with this entity
last_plot_added_date	string <date> Date a plot observation was last added to this project

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"pj_code": "pj.1",
"project_name": "Pawnee Grassland Classification",
"project_description": "Classification of the Pawnee National Grassland",
"start_date": "2006-05-30",
"stop_date": "2006-05-30",
"obs_count": 17,
"last_plot_added_date": "2006-05-30"
}

Upload projects

status: planned

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Array

object (tbd)

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Array

string

counts and vb_codes of newly created records

Response samples

200
403
500

Content type

application/json

["string"
]

References

Operations related to references

Get reference

Retrieve a single reference using its rf_code.

path Parameters

rf_code

required

string

Example: rf.1

query Parameters

with_nested	boolean Default: false Whether to include nested fields in the response
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier
rf_label	string Label for the reference
short_name	string Concise or abbreviated name that describes the resource being documented
full_citation	string Full text of the reference citation
reference_type	string Type of reference
title	string Formal title given to the work by its author or publisher, providing a description of the resource sufficient to differentiate it from other similar resources
publication_date	string <date> Date that the resource was published
total_pages	integer Total number of pages in the resource being described
publisher	string Organization that physically put together the report and publishes it
publication_place	string Location where the work was published
degree	string Name or degree level for which the thesis was completed
isbn	string The ISBN, or International Standard Book Number that has been assigned to this literature resource
url	string URL (Uniform Resource Locator) identifying where the resource and/or additional information about it is (or was) available
doi	string DOI (Digital Object Identifier) serving as the persistent identifier for the resource
journal	string Name of the journal, magazine, etc. in which the article was published

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "Peet Dissertation (1975)",
"short_name": "Anderson, L. et al. 1990.",
"full_citation": "Anderson, L. et al. 1990. Bryologist 93: 448-499.",
"reference_type": "Report",
"title": "The Biology of Lichens",
"publication_date": "2011-08-25",
"total_pages": 17,
"publisher": "NCU Herbarium",
"publication_place": "Chapel Hill, NC, USA",
"degree": "PhD",
"isbn": "978-1-889878-38-6",
"url": "http://www.algaebase.org",
"doi": "10.1000/182",
"journal": "Regnum Vegetabile"
}

Get all references

Retrieve a paginated collection of all references recorded in VegBank.

query Parameters

search	string Search term used for full-text record retrieval
limit	integer >= 0 Default: 1000 Maximum number of records to return
offset	integer >= 0 Default: 0 Number of records to skip before starting to return records
create_parquet	boolean Default: false If true, return data payload in binary Parquet format

Responses

Response Schema:
application/json

rf_code	string VegBank reference identifier
rf_label	string Label for the reference
short_name	string Concise or abbreviated name that describes the resource being documented
full_citation	string Full text of the reference citation
reference_type	string Type of reference
title	string Formal title given to the work by its author or publisher, providing a description of the resource sufficient to differentiate it from other similar resources
publication_date	string <date> Date that the resource was published
total_pages	integer Total number of pages in the resource being described
publisher	string Organization that physically put together the report and publishes it
publication_place	string Location where the work was published
degree	string Name or degree level for which the thesis was completed
isbn	string The ISBN, or International Standard Book Number that has been assigned to this literature resource
url	string URL (Uniform Resource Locator) identifying where the resource and/or additional information about it is (or was) available
doi	string DOI (Digital Object Identifier) serving as the persistent identifier for the resource
journal	string Name of the journal, magazine, etc. in which the article was published

Response samples

200
400

Content type

application/json

{"rf_code": "rf.1",
"rf_label": "Peet Dissertation (1975)",
"short_name": "Anderson, L. et al. 1990.",
"full_citation": "Anderson, L. et al. 1990. Bryologist 93: 448-499.",
"reference_type": "Report",
"title": "The Biology of Lichens",
"publication_date": "2011-08-25",
"total_pages": 17,
"publisher": "NCU Herbarium",
"publication_place": "Chapel Hill, NC, USA",
"degree": "PhD",
"isbn": "978-1-889878-38-6",
"url": "http://www.algaebase.org",
"doi": "10.1000/182",
"journal": "Regnum Vegetabile"
}

Upload references

status: planned

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Array

object (tbd)

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Array

string

counts and vb_codes of newly created records

Response samples

200
403
500

Content type

application/json

["string"
]

VegBankAPI (2.0.0-beta)

Introduction

Plot observations

Get plot observation

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get plot observations by project

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get plot observations by party

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get plot observations by plant concept

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get plot observations by community concept

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get plot observations by cover method

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get plot observations by stratum method

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get all plot observations

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Upload plot observations

Request Body schema: multipart/form-data

Responses

Response Schema: application/json

Response samples

Community concepts

Get community concept

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get community concepts by cl

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get community concepts by ob

path Parameters

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Get all community concepts

query Parameters

Responses

Response Schema: application/jsonapplication/vnd.apache.parquetapplication/json

Response samples

Upload community concepts

Response Schema:
application/json

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application/json

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application/json

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application/json

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application/json

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