Construction of database system on Japanese oribatid mites

Abstract Construction of database system on Japanese oribatid mites. Ichisawa. K. (Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Natural History, 499 Iriuda, Odawara Kanagawa 250-0031, Japan), Ito, M.T.*, Kaneko, N. (Graduate School of Environment and Information Sciences, Yokohama National University, 79-7 Tokiwadai, Hodogaya, Yokohama Kanagawa 240-8501, Japan), Shimano, S. (Department of Upland Farming, National Agricultural Research Center for Tohoku Region, 50 Harajuku-minami, Arai, Fukushima. Fukushima 960-2156, Japan) and Aoki, J. (Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Natural History, 499 Iriuda Odawara, Kanagawa 250-0031, Japan). With regard to studies on oribatid mites, Japan is one of the most advanced regions; various information on hundreds species were reported from many places in this country. Arrangement of the vast amount of information as digitalized database has been needed earnestly not only for oribatology in review of existing information but also for applied sciences, e.g. in establishing bioindicator method. In the present paper, a database system on oribatid mites was proposed. For efficient using as comprehensive database, we digitalized information on species names, synonymy, taxonomic system, literature, species names appeared in each literature, geographic information of sampling sites, species names collected in each sampling site, specimens and images. As identity code for each species, each primary scientific name was applied. This system is effective especially when the database has been united to other databases made by other developers. Simplification of data input/maintenance and solution of "synonym problem" are important problems on database construction. For easy and exact input, especially of scientific names appeared in each literature, choice/input system was applied; each name can be input just by choice from name list made in advance. Relational database system could enable easy maintenance work, which accompanies change of taxonomic system. To solve the synonym problem, correspondence of each synonym to each species code was done. Since each species code corresponds to each valid name, it is possible to refer identical valid name from different synonyms which appeared in several literature.