Data
Working with hundreds of people in our region, including many volunteers, we have collated millions of wildlife records. The data is stored and managed by our team using our own data management system called Orca. Using this powerful system we make the data available to thousands of people a year, helping to inform their decisions for conservation, improve their understanding, and record wildlife.
Sharing data
Sharing your data with us will help add to the wealth of knowledge about the wildlife of North Wales. The easiest way to share your wildlife record is to register for our Online Recording System, which has lots of nice tools such as online maps and species dictionary. If you'd prefer to use your smartphone to record wildlife you can use the LERC Wales App or please feel free to email us with your sightings. Our Recording Spreadsheet is a great way to organise your data and make sure its in the right format. We also encourage people to make contact with relevant Local Experts in particular species groups.
Requesting Data
To access data from us, you'll need to request it through our online data request portal, My LERC. Please note that we charge for certain data request types, whilst others are only available for particular data users. We always check that you have submitted your request correctly before issuing any data.
- Chargeable – For Ecological Consultants
- Chargeable pre-paid – Only for use by Ecological Consultants with a pre-paid agreement
- Partnership – Only for pre-agreed data requests, inc. SLA or other agreement holders
- Academic – Only for use by researchers or students registered with an academic body
- Taxon Based – For National Schemes and Societies, Local Expert Recorders & specialist recording groups
- Public – Only for use by the public for personal interest
Please use Aderyn before submitting a Public data request, as this will give you access to the same data, and we may direct you there anyway. Aderyn is not to be used for commercial purposes.
Statistics
The information shown below gives you a quick insight to the data we hold. For more detailed information see our Datasets page. Or if you want to have a look at data across Wales you can use the Aderyn website to see what species are in your area or to create a map of individual species across Wales.
The data we hold
Records by Species and Species Group
This graphic shows the number of records in our database by species group. Click on a circle to see more detail.
Records by Year of Sighting
This graphic shows the number of records in our database by species group, over time. Use the slider to select the time period or choose a species group to show the detail.
FAQs - Data
What data does Cofnod hold?
We store a broad range of environmental data. The largest proportion of data is species records, but we also hold extensive sites and habitats information as well as an increasing number of spatially referenced documents including consultancy reports. Our Datasets page gives a full list of the many datasets we hold. This detailed information is called metadata and it includes information such as who it is from, what species are included and the time period it covers.
Where do Cofnod get their data from?
We get data from lots of sources, but our main source is from volunteer recorders. We estimate over 70% of our data comes from them! Data is often sent to us in a variety of electronic formats and we even try to extract some data from paper sources. We are receiving more and more data from websites and phone apps.
How can I share data with Cofnod?
There are lots of ways of sharing data with us including using our Online Recording System or by emailing us your data. You may wish to contact a Local Expert to send them data and get help verifying what you've seen. There's lots of further information about recording on our website too.
How do I request data?
To access data from us, you'll need to request it through our online data request portal, My LERC. Please note that we charge for certain data request types, whilst others are only available for particular data users. We always check that you have submitted your request correctly before issuing any data.
On the Record
On the Record is our monthly online newsletter. It's full of interesting information about local wildlife recording, including that month's events and what to look out for in our Species Focus feature. Subscribe now to get next month's issue .