Development of a Crowdsourcing Internet Portal for the Detection and Control of the Number of Rare and Endangered Plant Species in the Urban Ecosystem on the Example of Kursk

Abstract

Currently, at least 10% of plant species and even more animals are threatened with extinction on the planet Earth. The rate of extinction of species is 50-100 times higher than the natural rate. This trend has continued over the past 20-25 years. There are 439 endangered species in the Kursk region. Of these, 160 species of fauna, 265 species of plants and 14 species of fungi. The problem of conservation of rare and endangered plant species can be solved by their timely detection, subsequent monitoring and protection in specific habitats. Based on this, the purpose of this study is to develop tools for creating the most complete databases of rare and endangered plant species in urban ecosystems based on crowdsourcing methods and modern information technologies. At the initial stage of the implementation of projects for the conservation of biodiversity, the main difficulty lies in the mass identification of the presence of plant and animal species that are subject to protection on the territory of the city. It is possible to solve this problem using crowdsourcing methods. The team of the Southwestern State University has developed an Environmental crowdsourcing portal of the Kursk Region. This portal is designed on a modular basis, it includes various modules, including a module designed to solve the problem of biodiversity conservation. The module is developed using HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, PHP and functions in user and administrator modes. Additionally, the functional blocks of thematic databases are designed using MySQL. Based on the database tables and the Yandex Maps API documentation, blocks for loading and displaying information on an interactive map have been developed. The module ensures the involvement of a wide range of urban population to identify the presence of plant and animal species that are subject to protection on the territory of the city. The module of the Environmental Crowdsourcing Portal of the Kursk Region considered in the article provides not only a solution to the problem of filling the database of rare and endangered species of plants and animals, but, like all crowdsourcing environmental projects, contributes to improving the level of environmental education of citizens, forming their consciousness and active life position.