Author
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Greene, Stephanie |
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Submitted to: Electronic and Electrical Engineers Symposium
Publication Type: Proceedings Publication Acceptance Date: 7/1/2005 Publication Date: 9/11/2005 Citation: Greene S.L., Afonin A.N., Frolov A.N., Dzyubenko N.I., Levitin M.M., Grichanov I.Ya., Luneva N.N, Saulich M.I, 2005. In Virtual collection of agricultural crops, their wild-growing relatives and pest organisms within the Former Soviet Union. The 5th International Symposium-Electronic biological collections: theory, standards, and perspectives of usage, Zoological Institute & Botanical Institute RAS. September, 11-18, 2005. Interpretive Summary: As a result of international cooperation, the first revision of the Agricultural Atlas of the former USSR territories is now nearing completion. It will consist of maps and associated metadata, biological descriptions, including photographs, and GIS exploratory software. The Atlas presents maps reflecting the distribution of major and minor crops, the incidence of diseases, pests, and weeds, distribution of wild crop relatives, as well as agroecological maps of major climatic parameters that influence agricultural production. The maps are based on an extensive review of literature, as well as original analysis of germplasm collections and herbarium. A demonstration of some of the maps can be reviewed at http://www.agroatlas.spb.ru/. Technical Abstract: The first revision of the Agricultural Atlas of the former USSR territories is now nearing completion. It will consist of maps and associated metadata, biological descriptions, including photographs, and GIS exploratory software. The Atlas presents maps reflecting the distribution of major and minor crops, the incidence of diseases, pests, and weeds, distribution of wild crop relatives, as well as agroecological maps of major climatic parameters that influence agricultural production. The maps are based on an extensive review of literature, as well as original analysis of germplasm collections and herbarium. A demonstration of some of the maps can be reviewed at http://www.agroatlas.spb.ru/. Parallel to the web-version, a CD ROM version is also being prepared. The GIS exploratory software, which is included on the CD-ROM, allows users to carry out simple GIS functions. Each object (either cultivated plant, pest, disease, weed, or cultivated relative) is represented by a number of standard files. The Map file is composed of 2-5 layers reflecting the geographical spread of the species. Pest, disease and insect distribution zones reflect levels of severity, usually high, medium and low. The Description file includes Taxonomic Position, Morphology and Biology, Distribution, Ecology, Economic Importance, and a Reference List. There is also an image, either a photograph or drawing illustrating the crop, wild species or pest. The Metadata file includes Scale, Accuracy, Projection, Content, Accuracy of Qualifier, Method of Map Construction and Sources of Data. This project is the first attempt to construct a single multilingual information and decision support system regarding the distribution of crops, their enemies, and indigenous genetic resources across the territories that comprise the Former Soviet Union. The work is supported by a grant from the USDA, ARS Former Soviet Union Cooperative Program, managed by the ARS Office of International Research Programs, U.S. State Department Non-Proliferation/Proliferation Threat Reduction, and the International Science and Technology Center. |
