Where is WildObs data published?

WildObs hosts analysis-ready camera trap data, with additional access through partner biodiversity networks. This guide explains where public data will be published and how it can be accessed. Whether or not data is made public depends upon the data sharing agreement associated with a project or collaborator. To learn about what data is made public, please visit Data sharing terms. This guide is not applicable to data that is not made public.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• On WildObs
• Partner platforms
  • Atlas of Living Australia
  • Global Biodiversity Information Facility
• Future publication locations
  • TERN and Eco Plots
  • Wild Album
  • Other partners
• Data publication considerations
  • No duplication
  • Citing WildObs data
  • Sensitive data

On WildObs

WildObs is the primary home for all curated Australian camera trap data. It provides:

• Free and open access to standardised, analysis-ready wildlife observation data - see WildObs data standards.
• Programmatic access via the WildObsR R package.
• Regular public releases of standardised datasets, each with a persistent identifier (PID).
• Overall database summaries and camera sampling maps.

After launch, the WildObs database will also be accessible using the online web application.

Partner platforms

WildObs data is shared with partner platforms, ensuring broader discoverability across national and international biodiversity networks. To understand how WildObs data is made interoperable with our partners, visit WildObs data standards.

Atlas of Living Australia

The Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) is Australia's largest biodiversity data aggregator. WildObs occurrence records and a curated selection of tagged wildlife images are published on ALA. Find WildObs data on ALA by :

• Searching occurrence records via the Atlas of Living Australia website. 
• Visiting the WildObs data partner page on ALA. 
• Programmatically using ALA's galah R package. 

When searching ALA, you can filter by data resource using the name of the dataset. For example, all images from the WildObs dataset 'Camera trap surveys in Queensland's Wet Tropics 2022-2023' are accessible here. 

Global Biodiversity Information Facility

The ALA is the Australian node of the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). Records published on ALA are also available on GBIF by:

• Searching occurrence records via the Global Biodiversity Information Facility website.
• Visiting the WildObs publisher page on GBIF.
• Programmatically via GBIF's API. Find out more how you can access data directly or using R and Python packages on GBIF Technical Documentation - Using data.

Future publication locations

TERN and Eco Plots

WildObs are working with Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN) to share structured, survey-based datasets via the EcoPlots platform. This data will be accessible using the ausplotsR R package.   

Wild Album

WildObs are collaborating to harmonise camera trap data internationally. As part of this effort, camera trap datasets will be findable and accessible via the GBIF-hosted Wild Album portal. This portal is dedicated to datasets from camera trap deployments in the Camera Trap Data Package (Camtrap DP) format. 

Other partners

Depending on project needs and data type, data with open and partial data sharing agreements may also be shared with: 

• Federal Biodiversity Data Repository (BDR) 
• Threatened Species Index (TSX) 
• Relevant state biodiversity data systems 

Data publication considerations

No duplication

To ensure data is findable and accesible, is not exclusively stored in one place. However, collaborative efforts in integration and mapping between platforms (and their respective data standards) ensures data can be discovered and used across biodiversity networks without duplication.

Citing WildObs data

Each dataset may have several PIDs because data is shared across multiple platforms. For example, ALA and TERN each generate their own DOIs. WildObs are also exploring the use of additional identifiers like Research Activity Identifiers (RAiDs). In development is an attribution guide to help users cite single or multiple datasets correctly, ensuring researchers involved across the data lifecycle are properly attributed. 

Sensitive data

Some datasets contain records of threatened species or are collected on private properties. These records are subject to additional privacy and access controls in accordance with legal and ethical guidelines. Sensitive species, such as those listed under the EPBC Act or state-level threat listings, have identifying information obscured, including deployment, event, observation, and media identifiers. For more information on which data is shared and how sensitive data is handled, please visit Data sharing terms.

Declaration of AI assistance: Some initial notes for this article prepared by Zachary Amir were structured and drafted using AI assistant Claude (claude-opus-4-5-20250514).