Exegesis Spatial Data Management

Exegesis investigated and mobilised the available data on 120 species covered by the Habitats Directive. These data were sought from third-party data holders, determining the data that exists and then working towards mobilising it on the NBN Gateway so that it could be used during preparation of the third Article 17 report.

We developed a condition monitoring methodology to gain an insight into and monitor the condition of non-statutory woodlands. The survey methodology was tested on 100 sample sites. The main outputs were a woodland condition assessment manual, survey database, regression analysis, project report and baseline condition data.

Over a series of projects exeGesIS created a spatial inventory of wood pasture and parkland in England. Data were assessed against historic maps and aerial photography, as well as modern data sources. Ground truthing was undertaken in two regions. The resulting inventory mapped 156,838 ha of wood-pasture and parkland.

We developed the NBN Record Cleaner, a generic standalone open source tool for validating and verifying biodiversity data.

 

The purpose of the habitat and land-use toolkit was to maintain and update a GIS habitat layer and associated attributes in a relational database. The tool manages the link between the GIS and database, ensuring that any changes to the features or the attributes are reflected in all data.

exeGesIS developed and provides support for Marine Recorder, a system for storing, managing and querying marine data. The system is used by some 40 organisations representing 130 individual users. We also provide training in the use of the software.
 

exeGesIS has produced habitat inventories for coastal vegetated shingle, saline lagoons, grassland and upland Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) habitats. These involved collating spatial data, capturing paper-based data, aerial photograph interpretation, ground truthing and processing available data to create standardised national datasets.

exeGesIS were contracted by Plantlife Cymru to help with the identification of computer based methods and techniques suitable for defining and mapping Important Plant Area (IPA) boundaries. We demonstrated how spatial analysis techniques can be used to define IPA boundaries and how areas of potential IPA expansion can be modelled and visualised using GIS.

The Hampshire Biodiversity Information Centre Partnership wanted to mobilise biodiversity information and encourage greater participation in wildlife recording. An IT development plan was required before a full bid could be made to the Heritage Grants Programme. This involved liaising with contributors and the production of a costed plan.