eHerbarium 3.10-release

The eHerbarium platform offers a unique opportunity for botany enthusiasts and researchers to explore and share plant images and biodiversity globally. By integrating advanced mobile, cloud, and AI technologies with traditional plant taxonomy and herbarium knowledge, eHerbarium aims to enhance how we document, learn about, and communicate information regarding plant life.

Plants are fundamental to Earth's ecosystems, supplying vital oxygen, nourishment, medicinal resources, and aesthetic value. They play a crucial role in supporting diverse forms of life. Herbariums provide significant assistance in plant identification, taxonomy, and biodiversity conservation. Over the past decade, digitization efforts of herbarium collections across various institutions have made significant strides, making many collections accessible online through platforms like Kew Gardens and the New York Botanical Garden Herbarium.

The eHerbarium app, developed with contributions from Kew’s Herbarium at the Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG), presents a comprehensive array of herbarium data available on mobile devices. It not only enhances user experience through an intuitive interface but also streamlines access to essential herbarium information for professional botanists, researchers, students, and the general public alike. This platform lays the groundwork for potentially consolidating herbarium data from various organizations.

In addition to traditional herbarium data, there is an abundance of digital live plant images that remain largely unorganized or poorly classified. The eHerbarium app addresses this gap by facilitating a structured process for professionals and amateur enthusiasts to upload, identify, license, share, or purchase plant images. This platform fosters a global community where plant lovers—including educators, students, botanists, scientists, photographers, garden enthusiasts—can contribute to a rich repository of botanical images.

Key Features of eHerbarium include:

• Access to an extensive collection of herbarium images from Kew’s Herbarium with high-quality botanical visuals readily available.
• Convenient options to capture and share plant photographs or herbarium images from personal collections while customizing licenses for community use.
• An AI-powered tool for enhanced plant identification capabilities.
• Autocomplete suggestions for taxonomic details like scientific names and common names streamlining data entry workflows.
• Automatic location pinning to detailed regions as defined by TDWG, enriching botanical records with accurate geographical information.

eHerbarium invites individuals—from seasoned botanists to nature enthusiasts—to join in a dedicated mission of documenting and celebrating the rich diversity of plant life that sustains our world. This application offers invaluable resources that enhance appreciation and knowledge of the plant kingdom.

For a brief overview of the app's functionalities and workflow, you may view this YouTube video.

For further information, please visit www.eherbarium.org.

This application is under U.S. Patent Pending status; unauthorized reproduction or distribution may result in legal action. International patent protection is also pending under a PCT application.