🍄 MycroMaps

🌿

Welcome to the MycroMaps project! This repository contains datasets, scripts, and resources for analyzing Fungi and Protoctista species using R and GIS tools. This project aims to provide a comprehensive set of data and tools for ecological research, biodiversity analysis, and spatial studies. This is currently an independent project, and will be updated slowly as I am currently pursuing my Bachelor's degree.

Table of Contents

• About the Project
• Key Features
• Datasets
• Prerequisites
• Contributing
• Acknowledgements

About my Project

This project was developed to study and analyze Fungi and Protist species through modern data science tools. As an Environmental Science student, I became fascinated with microbiologic (Mycro) organisms such as Fungi and Protists after I completed a Mycology course during my bachelor's degree. Combining my love for these organisms, and a passion for technology, this project was born!

Why Protoctista?

For many years, Mycologists classified Slime and Water molds as Mycological organisms, due to their appearance and similarities to fungi species. In the mid-20th century, thanks to advancements in technology, scientists began to recognize that these organisms contained traits from each of the other kingdoms, but didn't quite fit into one. This led to the reclassification of slime molds and water molds into the kingdom Protoctista (now often referred to as Protista).

Key Features

• Datasets: Includes diverse datasets on Fungi and Protist species.
• Knowledge Database: Information database containing links, videos, and documents highlighting the two kingdoms.
• R Scripts: Pre-written R scripts for data cleaning, visualization, and statistical analysis.
• Interactive Maps: Interactive Maps displaying Fungi and Protist species.
• Open-Source: The repository is open to contributions and collaboration from the community.

Datasets

The following datasets are/will be included in this repository:

1. Fungi Species Dataset:

   • Description: Contains records of various fungi species, including geographic locations, ecological conditions, and other relevant attributes.
   • Format: CSV, GeoJSON
   • Source: Collected from fieldwork and public databases.

2. Protist Species Dataset:

   • Description: Includes data on protist species, with a focus on species diversity and distribution.
   • Format: CSV, GeoJSON
   • Source: Field studies and verified databases.

Prerequisites

Ensure you have the following software installed:

• Download and install R
• Download and install RStudio (Optional, but recommended for easier R programming)
• Download and install QGIS (Optional, but recommended for spatial analysis and GIS integration, QGIS is opensource and free!)

Contributing

I welcome any and all contributions to this project! I am a beginner in learning GitHub, and have only general knowledge of plotting in R and GIS. This project is to help grow my skillsets.

Acknowledgements

• Special thanks to the mycology and protistology communities for their data and insights.
• This project was inspired by fieldwork and research conducted at Pennsylvania Western University and inspired by other projects such as SPUN, fungiMap, and MyCoPortal.