Small Collections Grant
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Giving Voice to a Silent Collection: Digitizing and Expanding the Floristic Record of Ekiti State at the FUOH Herbarium, Nigeria
Nigeria
Database, Curate specimens, Digitally image, Process backlog
Cost (USD):
3000
FUOH (pending registration)
Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE)
Objective:
• Conduct targeted expeditions to under-sampled forest-savanna transition zones in Ekiti State and adjacent territories, a critical "Wallacean Gap", to add 1,200+ accessions to FUOH.
• Establish archival-grade curation standards to ensure long-term specimen security and Index Herbariorum eligibility.
• Build the foundational physical and digital reference library to produce an updated, curated checklist of Ekiti State flora, providing a baseline for regional conservation and taxonomic research.
Implement a Darwin Core-compliant workflow to integrate FUOH records into global platforms like GBIF
Timetable:
• Months 1–2: Procurement of field hardware (presses, GPS) and archival supplies; training staff/students on curation.
• Months 3–9: Monthly field expeditions followed by specimen drying, mounting, and taxonomic verification for the state checklist.
• Months 10–11: High-resolution imaging of priority taxa and metadata entry into a Darwin Core-compliant database.
• Month 12: Data mobilization to GBIF, sharing duplicate specimens with some institutional herbaria (UIH, IFE), and the National herbarium (FHI, Ibadan), and formal submission for Index Herbariorum (IH) registration.
Scoring Rubric
Reviewer's name:
Collection Improvement (max. 120 points)
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Facilitating access to the physical collections by digitization (e.g., data entry, setting up database structure with an outline of the platform to be used, purchasing equipment, and imaging specimens) – up to 30 points.
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Enhancing physical collections by improving the conservation status of specimens in the herbarium (e.g., better folders, protecting covers, mounting paper, labeling, etc.) – up to 30 points.
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Curating specimens (e.g., updating families, species identification, identifying types) – up to 20 points.
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Increasing our understanding of the flora or funga by making new herbarium specimens available, such as processing of backlog or collecting and mounting of new specimens from understudied sites – up to 20 points.
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Securing collections by distribution of duplicates (or orphan collections) to other regional or international herbaria or shipping endangered collections to another herbarium – up to 20 points.
This proposal scores:
/120
Methods & Funding (max. 40 points)
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Match between the proposed budget and methods for the aims described – up to 10 points.
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Perceived need, the extent to which the project will benefit from IAPT funding: e.g., due to active floristic work or contribution to poorly collected sites, due to threatened conditions of collections, and for the degree of involvement of others (outreach and education). We give more points for herbaria in low- and middle-income countries – up to 20 points.
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Sharing duplicate specimens with other herbaria – up to 10 points.
This proposal scores:
/40
Broader Impacts (max. 40 points)
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Degree of regional importance of the collection or the taxonomic importance of the targeted collection – up to 10 points.
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The project will yield durable benefits (specimens, digitized metadata, databases, websites) – up to 15 points.
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The project involves outreach/mentoring and broad dissemination – up to 15 points.
This proposal scores:
/40
0
Year of last successful SCG application:
Has applicant applied for SCG before?:
No
Plan:
• Fieldwork & Expansion (Months 1-8): We will execute six systematic expeditions across Ekiti and adjacent states. Building on my previous surveys (Chukwuma et al., 2020), we will prioritize woody angiosperms and medicinal taxa.
• Curation & Backlog Processing (Months 2-10): We will acquire archival-grade mounting supplies to stabilize new accessions and existing backlog. This guarantees physical improvement of the collection, meeting the high standards required for IH registration and international specimen exchange.
• Digitization & Global Integration (Months 9-12): Following the success of my jointly published GBIF datasets (Chukwuma et al., 2022), all project data will be mobilized to global portals. Building on the "Silent Herbaria" framework established in my recent international collaboration (Zhigila, et al., 2025), we will implement a high-resolution imaging station to end the "data invisibility" of Ekiti’s flora. By digitizing metadata and imaging specimens from our recent campus checklist (Chukwuma, et al., 2024) and new regional surveys, we will link every physical accession to a Darwin Core-compliant digital record. This transforms FUOH into a discoverable resource that empowers taxonomic research and provides the evidence-based foundation for a comprehensive regional floristic archive. This effort will also create the first comprehensive floristic archive for Ekiti State, providing an indispensable reference for future Nigerian conservation policy.
Institution:
IH Code:
Country:
Target areas:
Applicant First Name/s:
email:
"Other" target:
Deborah
Chukwuma
Applicant Last Name/s: