ISIS Data Cleanup Campaign: Guidelines for Studbook Keepers

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1 Data Cleanup Campaign: Guidelines for Studbook Keepers Background Studbooks are currently compiled from a combination of ARKS records from zoos, and other record formats submitted from non- sources. This involves duplication of effort and data, with the same records entered both by registrars/records officers at holding institutions and by the studbook keeper. We are now moving towards a single animal records system ZIMS. The new system will integrate studbook and zoo records into a single database, containing information from both institutions (received directly from those institutions) and from non- institutions (via the relevant studbook keeper), removing much of the current duplication. Building the new system will require merging current studbook and zoo data. However, there are currently many differences between the records entered into SPARKS and the corresponding records in ARKS. Some of these differences are transcription errors, some are due to incorrect use of particular data fields, and some are the result of the different uses to which in-house and studbook records are put. We need to resolve these differences before data can be merged. The following guidelines have been developed to help studbook keepers assist the campaign to converge SPARKS and ARKS data. ZIMS is hoped to be on-line in 2010, so convergence this month is not necessary. But the size of the project will require steady progress towards the goal of a single Truth. Which animals should be in the studbook? All animals in the managed population ( members at a minimum) All the ancestors of the managed population, including animals outside of the region, to provide complete pedigree information All specimens that have lived in the designated region (i.e. animals unrelated to the managed population) to provide demographic and historical data Which data are correct? Wherever a discrepancy is found between SPARKS and ARKS data, one or other, or both records must change so that they agree. Obviously it is important that the changes are in the direction of greatest accuracy. Studbook keepers and records officers must work closely to get the best result. As a default, the information stored by the source institution (i.e. the institution where the event happened) should be considered the true record of the event. However, in some instances the SPARKS data may be more accurate than the corresponding ARKS data. Some examples are listed below. If, as studbook keeper, you have reason to believe that the SPARKS data are the more accurate version, or speak to the relevant registrar/records officer, to discuss how to bring the records to agreement April 2009 Page 1

2 Examples of where studbook data may be more accurate: Parent ID given in SPARKS but listed as UNK in : the studbook keeper may have been able to narrow down the possible sires to only one reproductively competent male in the group on the date of conception. Similarly, using minimum interbirth intervals may identify the only possible dam. Birth dates: with some exceptions, the birth date recorded at the institution where the birth occurred should be the most accurate record. However, where the birth occurred at a non- facility or in the wild, the date or date estimate recorded in the studbook may be more accurate than the date recorded at the zoo or zoos to which the specimen was subsequently transferred. Birth dates for marsupials: birth dates for marsupial species should be estimated using the guidelines found in Birth Date Determination in Australasian Marsupials (ARAZPA - Bach, 1998) and/or Recording of Marsupial Birth Dates - IDMAG Statement of Clarification #1 (issued 25 June 2003), an addendum to the Standards for Data Entry and Maintenance of North American Zoo and Aquarium Animal Records Databases. Though most zoos are now using these conventions, there may be instances (for example in historic data) where SPARKS gives the more accurate estimate. Which data to check Local IDs It is imperative that the local ID be entered for every regional institution the animal has been at. The IDs must match exactly: if the institution uses leading zeros in its ID, these must be entered. Be careful to note the difference between a zero (0) and the letter O in the local IDs. - For ancestors outside the region enter a local ID for each animal from at least one of its previous locations in order to link up with records submitted by the other region - For animals that move into the designated region enter the location and local ID of the donating collection in order to link up with records submitted by the other region - Animals that move out of the designated region enter the location and local ID of the recipient collection in order to link up with records submitted by the other region. Either mark this last entry as Lost-to-Followup, or be prepared to track its future movements and eventual death in the studbook. Sex should agree with institutional data. Early holders of the animal may have recorded sex as Unknown, notify them if the animal has been positively sexed. Birth date should agree with institutional data. The institution where the specimen was born or hatched generally has the most reliable data. Death date should agree with institutional data. The institution where the specimen died generally has the most reliable data. Sire/Dam IDs should agree with institutional data. The sire should be at the same institution where the specimen was conceived and the dam should be at the same institution as the specimen at time of birth. If assisted reproduction was involved, or the dam was shipped pregnant, or the egg was moved during incubation, enter Special Data notes clarifying the situation. Locations ensure that all locations are known to and use their mnemonics. April 2009 Page 2

3 Transfer dates ensure studbook, sending and receiving locations all use the same date. In some instances the date that a specimen leaves the sending zoo may actually be a day or several days before the date at which it arrives at the receiving zoo. Use the date of arrival at the receiving zoo as the studbook transaction date. Generally, you may leave the Removal Dates in Sparks blank. Taxonomy Taxonomic names used by the studbook will not always agree with those used by institutions. Zoo records contain the most accurate taxonomic description of their specimens, whereas the taxonomic name used by the studbook reflects the management unit selected. So, for example, zoo records might record a specimen as Equus burchelli antiquorum, but the studbook in which it is found may be for Equus burchelli reflecting species-level management. These discrepancies do not need to be addressed. IDs animals should have at least one permanent ID assigned (transponder, tag, tattoo, etc). Other useful IDs are House Name, Old Accession Numbers for institutions, etc. Enter all the IDs an animal may have had during its lifetime, with an associated date to clarify which was used at which institution. How to find discrepancies in your studbook data and what to do about them. This assumes that you are using Sparks 1.52 or later. It is suggested that you run these reports and/or use these tools in this sequence. The Data Cleanup Report in SPARKS will find possible duplicate animals based on a combination of location and local ID. - If the animals prove to be the same animal, combine all the known data into the record for the earlier studbook number and add a Special Data note explaining the circumstances. Run a Reproductive Report for the second animal to check if it was ever listed as a parent and correct the parent IDs for these offspring. Delete the second animal. Notify all the institutions involved to update their Arks records with the proper studbook number. DO NOT reuse the second studbook number. - If the animals are clearly different animals, then one of them has had the wrong local ID entered. Check with the institution to determine the correct one. [note that in some very rare cases, the institution may have assigned the animals a group ID, in which case a number of animals in the studbook would have identical local IDs] will find possible duplicate animals based on transponder ID. While it is possible that a transponder was reused in two animals, it would be very unusual. Follow the steps above as necessary. will create a list of unrecognized mnemonics used for transfers for specific animals. Contact Laurie Bingaman Lackey at laurie@isis.org with details of the institution (name, address, phone, fax, , contact name, or whatever you know) to have it added to master institution list. will clean up all the data files, removing records that you have marked for deletion, re-build all the indices, will look for and fix electronic problems, etc. The records that are deleted will appear on the report. April 2009 Page 3

4 The UDF Validation Report in Sparks will list all the variations entered into a single UDF field. This will allow you to find nonconsistent entries, for example, for a UDF field called Subspecies, you might discover that you have entries listed of amur and amer, where amur is correct. To be useful, UDF entries must match. Case does not matter, entries of AA, Aa and aa are considered to be the same. will list all the animals missing a UDF entry. If there are more than 100, you will need to edit the animals shown and then re-run this report to see the next 100. The Data Validation Report in Sparks This tool goes through the data more thoroughly and brings up discrepancies in the data. Running the Fine Details variation takes no more time than running the Coarse Details variation, it is highly recommended to run Fine Details. The Reproductive Parameters Report in Sparks The report will find potentially odd or outlier data. If the youngest animals to have reproduced are absurdly young, these may be wild-caught animals that need their birthdates adjusted, or the wrong parent may have been assigned. Too-short interbirth intervals may indicate babies with incorrect birthdates, or babies assigned to the wrong dam, or babies that were stillborn or prematurely born but the cause of death is not entered as such. A very high proportion of animals born in January may indicate many animals that have been assigned a birthdate of 1 January without entering a date estimate of Year. Where dates are estimated to a period (e.g. to a month, a year, or several years), the date entered should be the mid-point of the period. E.g. 1 July [YEAR] if estimated to the year. The Sparks/ data comparison report This report compares a Sparks dataset to the full dataset and looks for New births, transfers and historical data that have not yet been reported to you by the institution Animals that cannot be matched by location and local ID Deaths that you do not know about Discrepancies between the studbook and the data concerning sex, rearing type, contraceptive status Special data (house names, tags, transponders, tattoos, etc) that you may not have To receive a copy of the report, send a current backup of your Sparks data to Laurie Bingaman Lackey at laurie@isis.org. studbook tool on the website, You will need your own website password, contact your institutional records keeper who can assign you one if needed. A password borrowed from a colleague is not sufficient. Log into, choose Studbook/Institution Reconciliation reports. You will be offered 4 major options; the choice of Matches with Data Differences contains the most urgent problems to address. If you have not recently sent a current Sparks dataset to, do so, and the problem list will probably be shorter. Contact if you do not see your studbook data via this tool. This is an excellent way to find discrepancies between studbook and institutional records, presented side-by-side. There is also an ability to the institutions directly by clicking on the button in the upper right corner of the screen. April 2009 Page 4

5 Click on the tabs to see reports on Sex, Parents, Moves, Birth and Death information. Click on the blue studbook numbers and Institutional IDs to see Specimen Reports side-by-side for comparison. Please keep in mind that these reports show information on animals that do not MATCH. The studbook data may be correct, but may not match that of the institution. The Institution record keepers are using this tool to clean up their own files, so you may get a query from them about a discrepancy. Your score is currently based on the number of animals in the studbook that have at least one problem divided by the total number of animals in the studbook. If an animal has 3 separate problems, solving 2 of them will not change your score, please be patient and persistent! Your score cannot improve unless you make changes in Sparks and send a new data backup to laurie@isis.org so it can be posted. It will also be helpful to encourage registrars to send Arks data backups in frequently. Other website reports useful to studbook keepers: On the home page, type in a local ID (i.e. M01234) and a zoo mnemonic (i.e. EDINBURGH) and pick Specimen Report. This will show you everything knows about a particular animal. From the list on the left of the home page, pick Species Holdings, pick the MAMMALIA or AVES etc tab, pick the letter for the taxon of interest (i.e. 'P' for Panthera), pick a taxonomic name from the list, and it will show you all the zoos holding them, and the number of living animals at each. Click on the blue numbers to see the zoo's local IDs, click on an ID to get a Specimen Report. This displays only currently living animals at a specific zoo. At the bottom of the home page, pick Quick Search. Choose Institution = EDINBURGH or somewhere, choose Taxonomic name = 'Panthera leo', couple them with AND, and pick Submit Query. It will find all the animals ever at that institution, including dead ones or transferred ones. Click on their local IDs for a Specimen Report. Be aware that if there are subspecies possibly involved, you'll need to check for each possible taxon, one at a time (i.e. Panthera leo persicus & Panthera leo leo). Contact regional offices for questions and assistance as needed. Contact Laurie Bingaman Lackey at laurie@isis.org for questions and for - an up-to-date Sparks institution list - upgrades to the Sparks programme - assignment of new institutional mnemonics for locations in your studbook - a report of possible additional data for your studbook, based on a comparison of the Sparks data with the institutional data. Attach a current Sparks backup.zip file to an to Laurie. - advice on solving the Sparks Data Validation report problems - advice or a demonstration on using the studbook tool on the website meet Laurie at the website at a pre-arranged time and she can use your computer and demonstrate. These guidelines were developed jointly by Olivia Walter (UK Federation), Caroline Lees (ARAZPA) and Laurie Bingaman Lackey (). April 2009 Page 5