WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species

Search WoRMS

Statistics

162,709 valid species; of which 121,627 checked (75%)
246,114 species names including synonyms
306,629 taxa (species to phyla)
11,550 images
In the light of the 300th birthday of Linnaeus, we reached our target of 100,000 valid species names by the end of 2007. The final goal is to capture all of the estimated 230,000 marine species by 2010, in synchrony with the completion of the Census of Marine Life programme, still 67,291 to go.

About WoRMS

With WoRMS we aim to provide the most authoritative list of names of all marine species globally, ever published.

WoRMS is a contribution to the Catalogue of Life, the Encyclopedia of Life, and will serve as the taxonomic backbone of the Ocean Biogeograpihc Information System.
WoRMS has been accepted as one of the four campaigns organised by the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
Read more...

News

WoRMS collaborating with the Census of Marine Life
Added on: 2010-02-03 16:53:00 by Mark Costello, Ward Appeltans

The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is pleased to announce funding from the Census of Marine Life (CoML) Synthesis group at Memorial University to help complete draft species lists for gaps in taxon coverage in WoRMS. ... [Read more]

WoRMS participates in the Global Names Index initiative
Added on: 2009-11-06 12:42:00 by Costello, Mark

WoRMS is contributing to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and the development of international biodiversity informatics science through participating in the Global Names Index (GNI) initiative (www.globalnames.org). ... [Read more]

1,000,000 hits every month...
Added on: 2009-10-06 11:54:00 by Appeltans, Ward

The number of visitors to the WoRMS website is increasing. September was the third month already showing over one million hits. On a regular week day, there are more than 2,000 visits. For 2009, we are approaching 200,000 unique visitors (on the basis of the IP address). If WoRMS could help each of these researchers to save on average one working day per year to find the currently valid name or correct spelling, then this would mean a total gain of 1,000 full time equivalents this year only (not to mention a.o. the scientific benefit). ... [Read more]

NEW World Hydrozoa Database
Added on: 2009-08-24 15:51:00 by Schuchert, Peter

Hydrozoa are among the most diverse group of cnidarians. The World Hydrozoa database includes all extant hydrozoan species and is intended to act as a tool for anyone needing correct taxonomic information, both specialists and non-specialists alike. Visit: www.marinespecies.org/hydrozoa. ... [Read more]

NEW World Placozoa Database
Added on: 2009-07-29 12:28:00 by Bernd Schierwater

This is the smallest of all animal databases yet; it contains a single valid species, Trichoplax adhaerens. This actual situation is soon to change radically. The World Placozoa Database is online at www.marinespecies.org/placozoa. ... [Read more]

[Add] [Older news... ]

Download database

We see the web interface as the main means of access to information in the Aphia database. However, in some cases this web interface might be too limited, especially for those building off-line applications. If you want to get an electronic copy of the Aphia database, please fill in and send us the request form.

Only editors associated to WoRMS can download the results of a search query in a tab delimited or Excel file, when logged on.

Supporters

Citation

We encourage to cite the individual global or regional species lists that are often the source of the data, but you can also refer to us as follows:

Appeltans W, Bouchet P, Boxshall GA, Fauchald K, Gordon DP, Hoeksema BW, Poore GCB, van Soest RWM, Stöhr S, Walter TC, Costello MJ. (eds) (2009). World Register of Marine Species. Accessed at http://www.marinespecies.org on [yyyy-mm-dd].

Disclaimer

The editorial board maintains this register, but is aware that it is not complete and undoubtedly contains errors. The board cannot be made responsible for any errors or misuse of data contained in this register. Comments from our users are more than welcome, so if you come across any error or incomplete information or you are willing to contribute to this initiative please contact us at info@marinespecies.org.