The Catalogue of Life, started in June 2001 by Species 2000 and Integrated Taxonomic Information System

Integrated Taxonomic Information System

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System is a partnership designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the taxonomy of biological species. ITIS was originally formed in 1996 as an interagency group within the U.S...

 (ITIS), is planned to become a comprehensive catalogue of all known species of organisms on Earth

Earth

Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...

 by the year 2011. 66 taxonomic databases with contributions from more than 3,000 specialists from around the world are compiled into it and are also reviewed. The Catalogue contains the Annual Checklist (published yearly, ninth edition contains 1,160,711 species) + Dynamic Checklist (less extensive, updated more often, contains additional regional species checklists).

Whether the catalogue will reach it's aim is uncertain, the count stood at 1,370,276 for all kingdoms

Kingdom (biology)

In biology, kingdom is a taxonomic rank, which is either the highest rank or in the more recent three-domain system, the rank below domain. Kingdoms are divided into smaller groups called phyla or divisions in botany...

 in late October 2011.

See also

• Integrated Taxonomic Information System
  Integrated Taxonomic Information System
  The Integrated Taxonomic Information System is a partnership designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the taxonomy of biological species. ITIS was originally formed in 1996 as an interagency group within the U.S...
  
   ITIS
• Encyclopedia of Life
  Encyclopedia of Life
  The Encyclopedia of Life is a free, online collaborative encyclopedia intended to document all of the 1.9 million living species known to science. It is compiled from existing databases and from contributions by experts and non-experts throughout the world...
  
  
• World Register of Marine Species
  World Register of Marine Species
  The World Register of Marine Species is a database that hopes to provide an authoritative and comprehensive list of names of marine organisms. The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scientific specialists on each group of organism. These taxonomists control the quality of the...
  
  
• Macroscopic Observatory
  Macroscopic Observatory
  The Macroscopic Observatory is an online reference work to create a detailed world map of flora and fauna and track changes in biodiversity. The database will be populated with data about local species gathered by members of the public.-See also:...
  
  
• Wikispecies
  Wikispecies
  Wikispecies is a wiki-based online project supported by the Wikimedia Foundation. Its aim is to create a comprehensive free content catalogue of all species and is directed at scientists, rather than at the general public...
  
  
• ARKive
  ARKive
  ARKive is a global initiative with the mission of "promoting the conservation of the world's threatened species, through the power of wildlife imagery", which it does by locating and gathering films, photographs and audio recordings of the world's species into a centralised digital archive. Its...
  
  

Further reading

• Bisby FA, Roskov YR, Orrell TM, Nicolson D, Paglinawan LE, Bailly N, Kirk PM, Bourgoin T, Baillargeon G., eds (2009). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2009 Annual Checklist. Digital resource at http://www.catalogueoflife.org/annual-checklist/2009. Species 2000: Reading, UK.