European stag beetle monitoring network: transect observations is an occurrence dataset published by the Research Institute of Nature and Forest (INBO). This dataset contains transect data for Lucanus cervus, collected using a standard protocol (European stag beetle monitoring network ESBMN). The ESBMN is a European citizen science projects with participants from the Research Institute for Nature and Forest, Natuurpunt, University of Zagreb, insectes.org, Hirschkäferfreunde-Nature two e.V., Centro di ricerca Difesa e Certificazione, Reparto Carabinieri Biodiversità di Verona, Natural History Museum “La Specola”, University of Florence, European Invertebrate Survey, University of Wrocław, Associação Bioliving, Belgorod State University, National Institute of Biology, Rey Juan Carlos University, Switserland, I.I.Schmalhausen Institute of Zoology, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, People’s Trust for Endangered Species, the Royal Hollway University of London and independent researchers. Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/inbo/meetnetten-occurrences/issues We have released this dataset to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver. We would appreciate it if you follow the INBO norms for data use (https://www.inbo.be/en/norms-data-use) when using the data. If you have any questions regarding this dataset, don't hesitate to contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata or via opendata@inbo.be.

The ABV breeding birds dataset is a sample based dataset contains more than 4500 human observation events with over 200 000 common breeding bird observations. The breeding birds project is a joint initiative of the Institute for Nature and Forest Research (INBO) and the Vlaamse Vogelwerkgroep of Natuurpunt, in collaboration with Natuurpunt Study. The data is collected to discover trends in long term breeding bird occurrences in Flanders and is used for the EU reporting on trends, distribution and future prospects of the species listed in the Annex 2 and 4 of the Habitats Directive.

The “Occurrences from the Alien CSI Bioblitz: citizen science to engage society in invasive species monitoring” dataset is an occurrence dataset published by the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) in collaboration with the AlienCSI COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology, CA17122) research network (Roy et al. 2018). The dataset contains all the alien species data collected during the Alien CSI Bioblitz. This bioblitz was organized for the first time in May 2022 as a three day event and is planned to be repeated yearly. This bioblitz activity aims to engage society in invasive species monitoring. The first edition included guided bioblitzes in thirteen different protected areas across twelve European countries. The data are published as a standardized Darwin Core Archive. Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/alien-csi/bioblitz-occurrences/issues We have released this dataset to the public domain under a Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication. We would appreciate it if you follow the INBO norms for data use (https://www.inbo.be/en/norms-data-use) when using the data. If you have any questions regarding this dataset, don't hesitate to contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata.

Invasive species - Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis) in Flanders, Belgium is a species occurrence dataset published by the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). The dataset contains over 6,000 occurrences (Chinese mitten crab exclusively) sampled between 2000 and now. The data are compiled from different monitoring initiatives coordinated or run at INBO. The Chinese mitten crab is listed as a species of EU concern sensu the EU regulation 1143/2014 on the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of invasive alien species (IAS). This requires member states to report on the status and distrubution of such species. Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/LifeWatchINBO/data-publication/tree/master/datasets/invasive-chinese-mitten-crab-occurrences To allow anyone to use this dataset, we have released the data to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). We would appreciate however, if you read and follow these norms for data use (http://www.inbo.be/en/norms-for-data-use) and provide a link to the original dataset (https://doi.org/10.15468/eakzzv) whenever possible. If you use these data for a scientific paper, please cite the dataset following the applicable citation norms and/or consider us for co-authorship. We are always interested to know how you have used or visualized the data, or to provide more information, so please contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata, opendata@inbo.be or https://twitter.com/LifeWatchINBO.

Muskrat captures in Flanders, Belgium is an occurrence dataset published by the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). It contains information on all officially registered captures of muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) in and around Flanders, Belgium between 1991 and 2018. These data are provided by different management actors: the Flanders Environment Agency (VMM), Rattenbestrijding Oost-Vlaanderen (RATO vzw), Polders and Wateringen (vvpw), and provincial and municipal trappers, and aggregated and analyzed by the INBO since 1991. Here it is published as a standardized Darwin Core Archive and includes for each occurrence record an occurrenceID, date, location, samplingProtocol (trap) and samplingEffort (number of days or traps), scientific name, and the organization who made the capture. The original dataset contains close to 450.000 occurrences and is available on GitHub, but only presence records (over 103.000) are included in this version, which can be used to track muskrat distribution in Flanders since 1991. Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/inbo/mica-occurrences/issues We have released this dataset to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver. We would appreciate it if you follow the INBO norms for data use (https://www.inbo.be/en/norms-data-use) when using the data. If you have any questions regarding this dataset, don't hesitate to contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata or via opendata@inbo.be. This dataset was published for the MICA project, which received funding from the European Union’s LIFE Environment sub-programme under the grant agreement LIFE18 NAT/NL/001047.

PINK - Dragonfly (Odonata) monitoring for the permanent surveillance of coastal areas in Flanders, Belgium is a sampling event dataset published by the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). The dataset contains over 2.500 dragonfly (Odonata) observations sampled between 2008 and 2014 at the Belgian coast. The dataset includes 34 species. The data are collected for the project PINK (Permanente Inventarisatie van de Natuurreservaten aan de Kust), which was commissioned by the Agency for Nature and Forest in 2007. The project started with the aim of mapping the natural values on the coast in a more systematic way. A first 3-year phase (PINK I) ran from 2008 to 2010, in which the methodology was set up and an initial assessment was conducted. A second phase (PINK II) ran from 2012 to 2014, which was a continuation of the main components of PINK I, with special attention for invasive species and grasshoppers. A third phase (PINK III) is running from 2014 to 2018. This dataset contains Odonata occurrences observed during PINK I and PINK II. Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/inbo/data-publication/tree/master/datasets/pink-odonata-events To allow anyone to use this dataset, we have released the data to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). We would appreciate however, if you read and follow these norms for data use (http://www.inbo.be/en/norms-for-data-use) and provide a link to the original dataset (https://doi.org/10.15468/wp82td) whenever possible. If you use these data for a scientific paper, please cite the dataset following the applicable citation norms and/or consider us for co-authorship. We are always interested to know how you have used or visualized the data, or to provide more information, so please contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata, opendata@inbo.be or https://twitter.com/LifeWatchINBO.

This animal tracking dataset is derived from Spanoghe et al. (2022, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5879096) a deposit of Movebank study 1099562810. Data have been standardized to Darwin Core using the movepub R package and are downsampled to the first GPS position per hour. The original dataset description follows. O_WESTERSCHELDE - Eurasian oystercatchers (Haematopus ostralegus, Haematopodidae) breeding in East Flanders (Belgium) is a bird tracking dataset published by the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). It contains animal tracking data collected by the LifeWatch GPS tracking network for large birds (http://lifewatch.be/en/gps-tracking-network-large-birds) for the project/study O_WESTERSCHELDE, using trackers developed by the University of Amsterdam Bird Tracking System (UvA-BiTS, http://www.uva-bits.nl). The study has been operational since 2018. In total 13 individuals of Eurasian oystercatchers (Haematopus ostralegus) have been tagged in their breeding area in East Flanders (Belgium), west of the river Scheldt, mainly to study their habitat use on mudflats of the Western Scheldt (the Netherlands). Data are uploaded from the UvA-BiTS database to Movebank and from there archived on Zenodo (see https://github.com/inbo/bird-tracking). No new data are expected. This dataset was collected using infrastructure provided by INBO and funded by Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) as part of the Belgian contribution to LifeWatch. Additional funding was provided by the Sovon Dutch Centre for Field Ornithology.

The Updated checklist of the ants in Belgium is a species checklist dataset published by Institute of Natural Sciences. It contains information on 101 ant species occurring in Belgium, detected between 1833 and 2022. Here it is published as a standardized Darwin Core Archive and includes for each species: the scientific name, kingdom, and stable taxon identifier (in the taxon core), the presence in Flanders, Wallonia and the Brussels Capital Region, the year of the first introduction (first collection) and last assessment/observation in Belgium (given as a year range), as well as the degree of establishment and the pathway(s) of introduction (in the distribution extension), coarse habitat information (in the species profile extension), and the native range(s) (in the description extension). Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/trias-project/belgian-formicidae-checklist. We have released this dataset to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver. We would appreciate it if you follow the INBO norms for data use (https://www.inbo.be/en/norms-data-use) when using the data. If you have any questions regarding this dataset, don’t hesitate to contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata. This dataset was published as open data for the TrIAS project (Tracking Invasive Alien Species http://trias-project.be, Vanderhoeven et al. 2017), with technical support provided by the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). It is selected as one of the authoritative sources for the compilation of a unified and reproducible checklist of alien species in Belgium.

Meetnetten.be - Population counts for dragonflies in Flanders, Belgium is a sampling event dataset published by the Research Institute of Nature and Forest (INBO). It is part of the Meetnetten.be suite of monitoring networks for priority species in Flanders, in which data are collected at fixed locations using a standardized protocol (https://meetnetten.be). This dataset contains population counts for 6 priority dragonfly species (Yellow-spotted Whiteface - Leucorrhinia pectoralis, Northern Emerald- Somatochlora arctica, Spotted Darter - Sympetrum depressiusculum, Crescent Bluet- Coenagrion lunulatum,, Spearhead Bluet- Coenagrion hastulatum ). Here it is published as a standardized Darwin Core Archive and includes for each sampling event an eventID, date, location and sampling protocol (in the event core), the length of the transect (in the measurement or fact extension) and for each occurrence an occurrenceID, the number of recorded individuals, status (present/absent), life stage, sex, behaviour and scientific name (in the occurrence extension). Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/inbo/meetnetten-occurrences/issues Generalized and/or withheld information: as these are sensitive priority species, location information is generalized, in this dataset, to 5 or 10 km Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) grid cells. Original locations are available upon request. We have released this dataset to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver. We would appreciate it if you follow the INBO norms for data use (https://www.inbo.be/en/norms-data-use) when using the data. If you have any questions regarding this dataset, don't hesitate to contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata or via opendata@inbo.be. For all published Meetnetten.be datasets, see https://www.gbif.org/dataset/search?project_id=meetnetten.be

Meetnetten.be - Occupancy estimates of priority vascular plants species in Flanders, Belgium is a sampling event dataset published by the Research Institute of Nature and Forest (INBO). It is part of the Meetnetten.be suite of monitoring networks for priority species in Flanders, in which data are collected at fixed locations using a standardized protocol (https://meetnetten.be). This dataset data for 13 priority species. Here it is published as a standardized Darwin Core Archive and includes for each sampling event an eventID, date, location and sampling protocol (in the event core)and for each occurrence an occurrenceID, the occupied m² recorded, status (present/absent) and scientific name (in the occurrence extension). Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/inbo/meetnetten-occurrences/issues Generalized and/or withheld information: as these are sensitive priority species, location information is generalized to 1, 5 or 10 km Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) grid cells. Original locations are available upon request. We have released this dataset to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver. We would appreciate it if you follow the INBO norms for data use (https://www.inbo.be/en/norms-data-use) when using the data. If you have any questions regarding this dataset, don't hesitate to contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata or via opendata@inbo.be. For all published Meetnetten.be datasets, see https://www.gbif.org/dataset/search?project_id=meetnetten.be

VIS - Fishes in inland waters in Flanders, Belgium is a species occurrence dataset published by the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) and described in Brosens et al. 2015 (https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.475.8556). The dataset contains over 350,000 fish occurrences sampled between 1992 and 2012 from over 2,000 locations in inland rivers, streams, canals, and enclosed waters in Flanders, Belgium. The dataset includes over 64 fish species, as well as a number of non-target species (mainly crustaceans). The data are retrieved from the Fish Information System (VIS), a database set up to monitor the status of fishes and their habitats in Flanders and are collected in support of the Water Framework Directive, the Habitat Directive, certain red lists, and biodiversity research. Additional information, such as measurements, absence information and abiotic data are available upon request. Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/LifeWatchINBO/data-publication/tree/master/datasets/vis-inland-occurrences Length and weight measurement data of the individual fishes, absence information, occurrence data since 2013, as well as abiotic data of the sampling points (pH, temperature, etc.) are not included in the Darwin Core Archive and are available upon request. To allow anyone to use this dataset, we have released the data to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). We would appreciate however, if you read and follow these norms for data use (http://www.inbo.be/en/norms-for-data-use) and provide a link to the original dataset (https://doi.org/10.15468/gzyxyd) whenever possible. If you use these data for a scientific paper, please cite the dataset following the applicable citation norms and/or consider us for co-authorship. We are always interested to know how you have used or visualized the data, or to provide more information, so please contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata, opendata@inbo.be or https://twitter.com/LifeWatchINBO.

Meetnetten.be - Area count for Eresus sandaliatus in Flanders, Belgium is a sampling event dataset published by the Research Institute of Nature and Forest (INBO). It is part of the Meetnetten.be suite of monitoring networks for priority species in Flanders, in which data are collected at fixed locations using a standardized protocol (https://meetnetten.be). This dataset contains area count data for Eresus sandaliatus, one priority spider species. Here it is published as a standardized Darwin Core Archive and includes for each sampling event an eventID, date, location and sampling protocol (in the event core) and for each occurrence an occurrenceID, the number of recorded spider webs, status (present/absent) and scientific name (in the occurrence extension). Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/inbo/meetnetten-occurrences/issues Generalized and/or withheld information: as these are sensitive priority species, location information is generalized to 5x5 km Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) grid cells. Original locations are available upon request. We have released this dataset to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver. We would appreciate it if you follow the INBO norms for data use (https://www.inbo.be/en/norms-data-use) when using the data. If you have any questions regarding this dataset, don't hesitate to contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata or via opendata@inbo.be. For all published INBO Meetnetten.be datasets, see https://www.gbif.org/dataset/search?project_id=meetnetten.be