Taxonomic Bias by Jaime Tanner

World species are declining at relatively high rates. Researchers in the fields of ecology, conservation biology, and related areas of study are working to better understand species, and the factors contributing to their loss. In generating this knowledge, the scientific community in many ways shapes conservation policy and natural resource management. However, it has been shown that certain species and taxa receive much more attention than those that may be more difficult to access or less beneficial to humans. As a result, species which may be more critical to the overall health of an ecosystem may be at risk. With so much of our conservation practices dependent on the knowledge produced by the scientific community, it is critical to address this taxonomic bias in research. This project offers one solution to the challenge of communicating bias in organismal research. Using the publications from one major scientific journal, the visualization allows the the reader to explore animal species organized taxonomically and by number of publications where the species is mentioned. Readers can explore publications at a species level or use the sorting tools to observe trends. This visual investigation aims to provoke the reader into questioning prevailing practices for understanding nature. Using research publications as a lens through which we can explore scientific methods of inquiry, this piece visualizes not only the species which receive the most attention from humans but also those which may be least understood.