<scp>ShareTrait</scp> : Towards interoperable and reusable individual trait‐based data in ectotherms

Abstract More and more data on species traits are being collected and made openly available. Despite these efforts, effective syntheses of trait data to comprehend how species respond to and affect their environment are hampered by inadequate standards for publishing the data and the associated metadata, which limits the interoperability and reuse of data across studies. We have developed ShareTrait ( https://sharetrait.org/ ), a novel initiative that consolidates individual‐level trait data and associated metadata in an interoperable and reusable format, enabling standardised and integrated use. As a proof‐of‐concept, we initially focus on three core traits of ectotherms: metabolic rate, development time and fecundity. These traits, measurable in almost all animals, are fundamental to an organism’s overall fitness. ShareTrait enables researchers to share their (meta)data with the research community. To date, researchers from diverse fields have contributed 28,692 individual‐level data records to ShareTrait. These records originated from 45 datasets and are just the tip of the iceberg of existing data, highlighting the potential of ShareTrait to be a valuable community resource for meta‐analyses and comparative approaches. Future directions of ShareTrait will focus on accumulating more records, expanding to cover more traits, including those measurable at the population level, and partnering with journals in relevant fields (ecology, physiology, evolution) to make sharing standardised trait data part of the standard publication process. We envision ShareTrait, along with its digital infrastructure and comprehensive metadata, to be a catalyst for collating trait data across species. ShareTrait can streamline research efforts, minimise duplication and empower researchers to explore patterns and broader ecological, evolutionary and physiological questions among taxa (e.g. via meta‐analyses and comparative approaches). This way, ShareTrait will unlock new frontiers in trait‐based approaches, enhancing our understanding of species–environment relationships. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

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Publication Details

Journal
Functional Ecology
Published
2025-09-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.70147
Citations
4
Primary Topic
Species Distribution and Climate Change
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
7.35

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article

ShareTrait : Towards interoperable and reusable individual trait‐based data in ectotherms

Tim M. Blackburn, Natalie E. van Dis, Raimon Cuxart‐Erruz, Cristina Tuni et al.
4 citations
Functional Ecology
Species Distribution and Climate Change
7.35
article

ShareTrait : Towards interoperable and reusable individual trait‐based data in ectotherms

Tim M. Blackburn, Natalie E. van Dis, Raimon Cuxart‐Erruz, Cristina Tuni, Nicholas C. Wu, Brunno F. Oliveira, Irene Martorelli, Sarah Jorissen, Adam Hermaniuk, Natalie Pilakouta, Iris L. E. van de Pol, Kévin Tougeron, Tamar Keasar, Joost J. Vogels, Joris M. Koene, Félix P. Leiva, Luis E. Castañeda, Diego R. Barneche, Juan Diego Gaitán‐Espitía, Germán Orizaola, Jacintha Ellers, Brett G. Olivier, K. S. Shameer, Edwin J. Niklitschek, Steven L. Chown, Bertanne Visser, Ian C.W. Hardy, Paulina Gebauer, Milad Shokri, Matty P. Berg, Cécile Le Lann, Andrew G. Hirst, Craig R. White, Wilco C. E. P. Verberk, Robby Stoks, Daniel F. Gomez Isaza, Carlos Molinet
article en
4 citations

Abstract

Abstract More and more data on species traits are being collected and made openly available. Despite these efforts, effective syntheses of trait data to comprehend how species respond to and affect their environment are hampered by inadequate standards for publishing the data and the associated metadata, which limits the interoperability and reuse of data across studies. We have developed ShareTrait ( https://sharetrait.org/ ), a novel initiative that consolidates individual‐level trait data and associated metadata in an interoperable and reusable format, enabling standardised and integrated use. As a proof‐of‐concept, we initially focus on three core traits of ectotherms: metabolic rate, development time and fecundity. These traits, measurable in almost all animals, are fundamental to an organism’s overall fitness. ShareTrait enables researchers to share their (meta)data with the research community. To date, researchers from diverse fields have contributed 28,692 individual‐level data records to ShareTrait. These records originated from 45 datasets and are just the tip of the iceberg of existing data, highlighting the potential of ShareTrait to be a valuable community resource for meta‐analyses and comparative approaches. Future directions of ShareTrait will focus on accumulating more records, expanding to cover more traits, including those measurable at the population level, and partnering with journals in relevant fields (ecology, physiology, evolution) to make sharing standardised trait data part of the standard publication process. We envision ShareTrait, along with its digital infrastructure and comprehensive metadata, to be a catalyst for collating trait data across species. ShareTrait can streamline research efforts, minimise duplication and empower researchers to explore patterns and broader ecological, evolutionary and physiological questions among taxa (e.g. via meta‐analyses and comparative approaches). This way, ShareTrait will unlock new frontiers in trait‐based approaches, enhancing our understanding of species–environment relationships. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

Functional EcologyVol. 39(11)
Oranim Academic College of Education (IL), University of Calicut (IN), Jagiellonian University (PL), Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung (DE), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), University of Mons (BE), Zoological Society of London (GB), Australian Institute of Marine Science (AU), University of Helsinki (FI), University of Salento (IT), Radboud University Nijmegen (NL), Austral University of Chile (CL), Universidad de Oviedo (ES), University of St Andrews (GB), Murdoch University (AU), The University of Western Australia (AU), Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech (BE), Radboud University Medical Center (NL), Ecosystèmes, Biodiversité, Evolution (FR), Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NL), Evolutionary Genomics (United States) (US), Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sciences (NL), Istituto di Scienze Marine del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (IT), Department of Physiological Sciences (RU), Fondation Pour la Recherche Sur la Biodiversité (FR), Universidad de Los Lagos (CL), University College London (GB), University of Turin (IT), Monash University (AU), Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (DE), University of Chile (CL), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (NL), University of Hong Kong (HK), KU Leuven (BE)
Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung, Helsingin Yliopisto, Nature Conservancy, River Foundation, University of St Andrews, University College London, Monash University, Radboud Universiteit, Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, Fondation pour la Recherche sur la Biodiversite, Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, University of Hong Kong, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, University of Haifa, Universidad de Chile, Universidad de Oviedo, Koninklijk Nederlands Instituut voor Onderzoek der Zee, Universidad Austral de Chile, Vlaamse regering, University of Calicut, Universidad de Los Lagos, Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo, Directorate for Biological Sciences
Openalex Percentile: Top 3%
Species Distribution and Climate Change
7.35
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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