Sharing records

When you have done all the hard work in noting down all the details of your wildlife sighting, what do you do next?

The important thing is to make sure that your record appears on the national databases so that people can make use of it in planning and conservation work.

The steps to follow are:

1. If there is a Local Environmental Records Centre covering the area for your wildlife record, then send the details to them. Contact them first to make sure you get it in the right format. They will do all the hard work from then on and put the records on the national database. Local Environmental Records Centres in Scotland are listed below.

2. If there is a recording scheme or society for the species you have recorded then get in touch with them to see if they can process your record and put them on the national database.

3. If there is no Records Centre for the area and no recording scheme or society, then put the details on iRecord. This is a website that collects and verifies wildlife records and then adds them to the national database and makes them available on the NBN Atlas.

Remember, you can use the internet and websites like iSpot to help identify the species you have seen. BRISC is always happy to help with any part of the recording process, so please email us at info@brisc.org.uk with questions.

Notes about museum collections

• Dundee: Dundee Art Galleries & Museums hold a historical biological dataset gathered by Naturebase

• Falkirk: Falkirk Museum holds historic records but is no longer a local recording centre

• Perth: Perth Museum/Perth Council hold some biological data but do not offer the services of local records centre

• Glasgow Museum Biological Records Centre holdings include East and West Dunbartonshire, Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, North and South Lanarkshire and much data for the surrounding areas