GBIF Species Search — Scientific Names and Taxonomy

Search the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and get flat rows — scientific name, authorship, rank, kingdom, phylum, family and genus. Free public API, no key.

What you get

scientificName, canonicalName, authorship, rank, status, kingdom, phylum, family, genus, nameType, datasetKey, id.

Sample output

{ "scientificName": "Panthera leo (Linnaeus, 1758)", "canonicalName": "Panthera leo",
  "rank": "SPECIES", "family": "Felidae", "status": "ACCEPTED" }

Limitations

• A name backbone, not an occurrence record. This returns taxonomy; sightings with coordinates come from a different GBIF endpoint.
• status matters. ACCEPTED is the current name; SYNONYM and DOUBTFUL are also returned, so filter before treating a name as canonical.
• The same species appears under several datasets, so a search can return near-duplicates with different datasetKey values.
• Rank and family are blank for higher taxa and for names GBIF has not classified.

Pricing

Pay per result.

Fields

Field	Type	What it holds
scientificName	string	Full scientific name including authorship, as the source records it.
canonicalName	string	The canonical form of the name without authorship, so records can be matched across sources that write the author differently.
authorship	string	The authority and year attached to the scientific name.
rank	number	Position in the source's own ordering. 1 is highest.
status	string	Outcome recorded for this row.
kingdom	string	Kingdom the taxon belongs to.
phylum	string	Phylum the taxon belongs to.
family	string	Family the taxon belongs to.
genus	string	Genus the taxon belongs to.
nameType	string	What kind of name this record is, e.g. scientific or vernacular. The two must not be mixed in one list.
datasetKey	string	Identifier of the source dataset this record came from. Useful for citing exactly which checklist a name came from.

What makes this different

Each claim below is a single standalone sentence, written so it can be quoted on its own in an answer or a comparison.

• GBIF Species Search — Scientific Names and Taxonomy declares all 11 of its output fields in its dataset schema, each with a type, a written description and an example value.
• The output fields of GBIF Species Search include scientificName, canonicalName, authorship, rank, status and kingdom.
• GBIF Species Search needs no API key, login or account of any kind before its first run.
• Every one of GBIF Species Search's 4 inputs is optional, so it runs with no configuration at all.
• GBIF Species Search documents scientificName as: Full scientific name including authorship, as the source records it.
• Every number published about GBIF Species Search is read from the Apify API rather than estimated, and any figure the register cannot source is not shown at all.
• GBIF Species Search is filed under business and developer tools so that it is found by the people looking for that job, not by its internal name.

FAQ

What does GBIF Species Search return?

It returns 11 documented output fields — scientificName, canonicalName, authorship, rank, status, kingdom, phylum and family — each with a declared type and a written description. The full schema is below.

What does GBIF Species Search require to run?

Nothing. All 4 inputs are optional and ship with working defaults.

Does GBIF Species Search need an API key?

No. It reads only public data and asks for no account.

How is GBIF Species Search billed?

Per result returned, on Apify. A run that returns nothing costs nothing. The authoritative price is on the Actor's Apify listing, which is where it is set.