Analysis tools
NaturaList provides four tools for browsing and visually exploring a dataset: Taxonomic Tree (the default), Hierarchy Bubbles, Trait Matrix, and Regional Distribution. Switch between them using the view configuration button in the top bar, which opens the Configuration dialog.
Tools that are unavailable for the current dataset are shown greyed out in the dialog with a brief explanation of why (e.g. "No region map data configured").
When occurrence records are present, the Configuration dialog also shows a Data Scope toggle - switch between Taxa and Occurrences to change what the analysis counts and displays.
Taxonomic tree
The default view when you open a NaturaList project. It displays the full taxon hierarchy as a scrollable nested list. Each row shows the taxon name and its associated data fields laid out according to the project's configuration. Tapping a taxon name opens its Details screen with additional information and statistics.
Navigating the list
The tree is ordered by taxonomic rank. The exact hierarchy and rank labels depend on what the project author has configured.
When the result set is very large, the list loads in batches. A Show next N items button appears at the bottom to load more results.
Configuration options
The Taxonomic Tree has several display options accessible from the Configuration dialog:
Taxon display level - collapse the tree to a chosen rank. For example, set this to "Family" to show only families in the list, hiding all species and genera. Useful for getting a high-level overview of a large dataset.
Show terminal taxa only - skip intermediate ranks and show only the deepest-level taxa (usually species). Useful for a flat species list without the hierarchy scaffolding.
Show taxa without occurrences - in projects that include occurrence records, this toggle controls whether taxa with no attached occurrences are included in the tree. Switch it off to show only taxa that have physical records.
Include children in search matches - when a parent taxon (e.g. a genus or family) matches the text search, its child taxa are included in the results too. This is on by default; switching it off restricts results to the exact matching rank.
Hierarchy bubbles
A zoomable circle-packing diagram where each circle represents a taxonomic group, sized by how many terminal taxa or occurrences it contains. Useful for getting a quick look-through overview of the taxonomic composition of your current filtered set and their proportional volumes.
When a filter is active, color encodes the proportion of matching taxa within each group - cool tones for low proportions, warm tones for high.
Interactions:
- Hover over a bubble for a tooltip showing counts and percentages.
- Click a bubble to zoom into that group; click the background to zoom back out.
- A Download SVG button saves the current diagram as a vector file.
No special spreadsheet configuration is required; this view is always available as long as the project has taxon data.
Trait matrix
A cross-tabulation table showing how taxa (or occurrences) are distributed across the values of a chosen data attribute.
To use:
- Select a primary trait from the dropdown - this populates the column headings.
- Optionally choose a second trait or date field for the row dimension.
- Toggle the result format between counts and percentages at the bottom of the table.
- Click any cell for a plain-language description of what it represents.
In taxa mode, taxonomic groups with sub-groups are clickable - drill down into a family or a species, for example. A breadcrumb trail lets you navigate back up.
Which traits appear here?
Only traits that have been marked as filterable in the project configuration appear as options in the Trait Matrix. If a trait you expect to see is missing, the project author may not have enabled filtering for it.
Regional distribution
A choropleth analysis tool that colors an SVG map according to the distribution data in your dataset - answering questions like "Which regions have the most species?", "Where do confirmed breeders concentrate?", or "What is the mean body size per region?" depending on the data types the project author provided. It may be inaccessible if the project doesn't contain any geographic data.
To use:
- Select which map to display from the dropdown (if there are multiple distribution maps).
- If the map data includes distinct status categories (e.g. breeding statuses) or numeric values, a segment picker appears - choose whether to count any presence, focus on a specific category, or switch to the numeric track.
- In numeric mode, choose a statistical operation from the dropdown: count, sum, mean, median, min, max, standard deviation, or percentage above/below a threshold you specify.
- When a filter is active, choose how proportions are calculated:
- By filter - of the currently filtered taxa, what share occurs in each region?
- By region - of all taxa that ever occur in a region, what share matches the current filter?
- By total - what share of the entire dataset is present in each region?
A plain-language sentence below the controls always reflects the current configuration, so you can confirm exactly what is being computed.
The map is displayed alongside a ranked data table. Click any row to expand a drill-down panel showing the individual records for that region (with numeric summary statistics when applicable). Click the map to enlarge it to fullscreen.
If the map defines region groups (e.g. provinces grouped by state, or countries by continent), a toggle lets you aggregate data at the group level instead of individual regions.