Biological Records Centre
| Abbreviation | BRC |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1964 |
| Legal status | Unit within the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology |
| Location |
|
|
Region
|
UK |
|
Head
|
Dr David Roy |
| Affiliations | Centre for Ecology and Hydrology |
| Website | www |
The Biological Records Centre (BRC) established in 1964, is a national focus in the UK for terrestrial and fresh water species recording.
The term “biological records centre” is also used in the context of local centres, now frequently referred to as “local environmental records centres” (LERCs).
The Biological Records Centre (BRC) was set up in 1964 by the Nature Conservancy (UK) at its recently opened Monks Wood Experimental Station near Huntingdon. BRC developed from the Atlas of the British Flora project of the Botanical Society of the British Isles (BSBI) to map the distribution of British (and Irish) flowering plants, which had established basic principles for biological recording in the UK. The former BSBI project leader, Dr Franklyn Perring, established BRC with the project’s original data and data processing equipment.
As part of the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH), BRC provides a focus for the collation, management, dissemination and interpretation of species observations (biological records). BRC is now based at CEH Wallingford, near Oxford. Most records are collected by volunteer recording schemes and societies, which are integral to the work of BRC. These activities are supported through a long-term funding partnership between the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC).
Together with more than 80 recording schemes and societies, BRC supports biological recording for a wide range of plant and animal groups. BRC helps the recording community to publish atlases, datasets and other online resources, providing information for research, policy and the conservation of wildlife. Through the use of technology BRC helps to harness the enthusiasm and knowledge of naturalists and to enable them to collate and analyse their records. To celebrate the BRC's 50th Anniversary, a special issue of the Biological Journal of the Linnean Society was published with 23 research and review articles covering the Centre's work.
...
Wikipedia