Atlases of the flora and fauna of Britain and Ireland explained

The biodiversity of Great Britain and Ireland is one of the most well-studied geographical areas of its size in the world. This biota work has resulted in the publication of distribution atlases for many taxonomic groups. This page lists these publications.

A full atlas is generally regarded as a definitive work on distribution, whereas a provisional atlas is typically produced as an interim stage to show survey progress.

One of the bodies responsible for publishing a great number of distribution atlases is the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology. Each atlas presents 10 km² distribution maps for the species within its scope. Maps typically use different symbols to signify records from differing time-periods - solid symbols for 10-km squares (hectads) that have recent records, and unfilled symbols for 10-km squares for which only older records exist, according to a defined cut-off date.

The atlases are produced by the Biological Records Centre (BRC), which is run by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, part of the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology based at CEH Wallingford, Crowmarsh Gifford, Oxfordshire. The data used to produce the maps is gathered by volunteer biological recorders and collated by the BRC Recording Schemes.

The atlases fall into two groups:

• Main Atlases are commercially published books, presenting the current state of knowledge for well-recorded groups. They typically include text information about the species, and other supporting material such as analyses of trends. They are usually produced only where a well-established recording scheme has been in operation for a significant period of time, and the scheme organisers believe that the data represent a comprehensive picture of the distribution of each species.
• Provisional Atlases give recorders an indication of progress and illustrate early results. Some of the later ones are quite detailed and less "provisional" - for example the Hoverfly Atlas, which provides charts of flight-period as well as text, and the Atlas of Aquatic Bugs, which has biological information and identification aids for some of the animals.

Flora

Taxonomic group	Publication details	Body responsible for survey co-ordination	Full or provisional	Date range for survey data
Algae	Norton, T.A. 1985 Provisional atlas of the marine algae of Britain and Ireland	ITE
Mosses and Liverworts
Fungi
Slime-moulds	Ing, B. 1982 Provisional atlas of the myxomycetes of the British Isles	ITE
Pteridophytes (Ferns and allies)	Preston C. D., Pearman D. A. and Dines T.D. (2002) New Atlas of the British & Irish Flora, Oxford University Press	BSBI	Full	TBC
Flowering plants and conifers	Preston C. D., Pearman D. A. and Dines T.D. (2002) New Atlas of the British & Irish Flora, Oxford University Press	BSBI	Full	TBC

Fauna

Taxonomic group	Taxonomic sub-group	Publication details	Body responsible for survey co-ordination	Full or provisional	Date range for survey data
Amphibians		See Herpetofauna below
Birds		Book: Sharrock , J. T. R. (John Timothy Robin) . British Trust for Ornithology. 0-903793-01-6. 477p : ill., maps ; 27 cm. The atlas of breeding birds in Britain and Ireland. Tring. 1976.	BTO	Full	TBC
		Book: Lack , Peter . Published by T. & A.D. Poyser [for] British Trust for Ornithology, Irish Wildbird Conservancy. 0-85661-043-7. 447 p. : ill. ; 27 cm. The Atlas of wintering birds in Britain and Ireland. Calton, Staffordshire. 1986.	BTO	Full	TBC
		Book: Wernham , Chris . T. & A. D. Poyser. 0-7136-6514-9. 884 p. The migration atlas movements of birds of Britain and Ireland. London. 2002.	BTO	Full	TBC
Centipedes		Barber, A.D. & A.N. New 1988 Provisional Atlas of the Centipedes of the British Isles	ITE
Herpetofauna		Arnold, H. R. (1995) Atlas of amphibians and reptiles in Britain HMSO	ITE	Full	TBC
Annelids	Leechs	Elliott, J.M. & Tullett, P.A. 1982. Provisional atlas of the freshwater leeches of the British Isles.	ITE
Arachnida	Harvest-spiders	Sankey, J.H.P. 1988 Provisional atlas of the harvest-spiders (Arachnida: Opiliones) of the British Isles	ITE
	Spiders	Harvey, P.R., Nellist, D.R. & Telfer, M.G. (editors) 2002. Provisional atlas of British spiders (Arachnida, Araneae) 2 vols.	ITE
Insects	Beetles	Alexander, Keith N. A. 2003 Provisional atlas of the Cantharoidea and Buprestoidea (Coleoptera) of Britain and Ireland Johnson, C. 1993. Provisional atlas of the Cryptophagidae - Atomariinae (Coleoptera) of Britain and Ireland Luff, Martin L. 1998 Provisional Atlas of the Ground Beetles (Coleoptera, Carabidae) of Britain Mendel, H. 1990. Provisional atlas of the click beetles (Coleoptera: Elateroidea) of the British Isles Twinn, P.F.G and P.T. Harding 1999 Provisional Atlas of the longhorn beetles of Britain Cox M., Atlas of the Seed and Leaf Beetles of Britain and Ireland (Bruchids and Chrysomelids) -	ITE
	Bugs	Huxley, T. 2003. Provisional atlas of the British aquatic bugs (Hemiptera, Heteroptera).	ITE
	Butterflies	Fox, R., Asher, J., Brereton, T., Roy, D. and Warren, M (2006) The State of Butterflies in Britain and Ireland , Pisces Publications Bland, K.P. 1986 Preliminary atlas of the Lepidoptera: Incurvarioidea of the British Isles	Butterfly ConservationITE	Full	2000–2004
	Caddissflies	Marshall, J.E. 1978 Provisional atlas of the insects of the British Isles: Part 8, Trichoptera: Hydroptilidae, caddisflies	ITE
	Dragonflies & damselflies	Merritt, R., N. W. Moore and B. C. Eversham (1996) Atlas of the dragonflies of Britain and Ireland, HMSO	Institute of Terrestrial Ecology	Full	TBC
	Earwigs	See Grasshoppers, crickets & allies below
	Fleas	George, R.S. 1974. Provisional atlas of the insects of the British Isles: Part 4, Siphonaptera, fleas.	ITE
	True flies	Stubbs, Alan E. Provisional Atlas of the long-palped craneflies (Diptera, Tipulinae) of Britain and Ireland Ball, S.G. & McLean, I.F.G. 1986 A preliminary atlas of the Sciomyzidae of Great Britain Ball, S.G. & Morris, R.K.A. 2000 Provisional atlas of British hoverflies (Diptera, Syrphidae). Drake, C.M. 1991 Provisional atlas of the Larger Brachycera (Diptera) of Britain and Ireland Goldie-Smith, E.K. 1990 Distribution maps for Dixidae in Great Britain and Ireland Pont, A. 1986 Provisional atlas of the Sepsidae (Diptera) of the British Isles. Stubbs, A.E. 1993 Provisional atlas of the ptychopterid craneflies (Diptera: Ptychopteridae) of Britain and Ireland	ITE
	Grasshoppers, crickets & allies	Haes, E. C. M. and P. T. Harding (1997) Atlas of grasshoppers, crickets and allied insects in Britain and Ireland, HMSO	ITE	Full	TBC
	Hymenoptera	Archer, M.E. 1979 Provisional atlas of the insects of the British Isles: Part 9, Hymenoptera: Vespidae, social wasps. Anon. 1980 Atlas of the bumblebees of the British Isles Barrett, K.E.J. 1979 Provisional atlas of the insects of the British Isles: Part 5, Hymenoptera: Formicidae, ants Edwards, Robin (Ed.) 1997-2001 Provisional Atlas of the aculeate Hymenoptera of Britain and Ireland Parts 1-4	ITE
	Lacewings and allies,	Plant, Colin W. 1999 Provisional Atlas of the lacewings and allied insects (Neuroptera, Megaloptera, Rhaphidioptera and Mecoptera) of Britain and Ireland	ITE
Mammals		Arnold, H. R. (1993) Atlas of mammals in Britain HMSO	ITE	Full	TBC
Millipedes		British Myriapod Group, 1988. Preliminary atlas of the millipedes of the British Isles	ITE
Nematodes		Brown, D.J.F., Taylor, C.E., Boag, B., Alphey, T.J.W. & Orton-Williams, K.J. 1977. Provisional atlas of the nematodes of the British Isles: Part 1-3, Longidoridae, Trichodoridae and Criconematidae	ITE
Reptiles		See Herpetofauna above
Ticks		Martyn, K. P. Martyn, K. P. 1998 Provisional Atlas of the ticks (Ixoidea) of British Isles	ITE

External links

• Biological Records Centre website