On the Social Structure behind Biological Collections

Abstract

In this paper we describe two network models as a base for understanding the relevance of social processes involving collectors for shaping the composition of biological collections. Species-Collector Networks (SCNs) represent the interests of collectors towards particular species, while Collector CoWorking Networks (CWNs) represent collaborative ties between collectors during fieldwork. We demonstrate the practical use of our models with species occurrence data from the University of Brasília Herbarium.