GBIF Biodiversity Research
LiveFind species taxonomy and summarize indexed occurrence records.
Search GBIF checklists, inspect exact taxonomy and compare aggregate occurrence counts by country and recorded-event year. Keep scientific names, accepted and backbone keys, source links and partial facet limits explicit.
Connect / 3 tools
Server URL
https://toolcargo.com/mcp/gbifClaude Code
claude mcp add --transport http --scope user toolcargo-gbif https://toolcargo.com/mcp/gbif \
--header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"Create a key in your dashboard. Other clients: setup guides.
What it helps you do
- Source-linked species taxonomy
- Exact checklist and backbone keys
- Aggregate recorded-event counts without location records
Built for: Researchers, educators and writers exploring biodiversity source metadata.
Example requests
Check a biodiversity research lead
“Search GBIF for Panthera leo, inspect the selected species key, then use its occurrenceTaxonKey to summarize records in ZA during 2020. Explain the record types and why the count does not estimate the lion population.”
A source-linked taxonomy check and bounded aggregate research summary.
Tools
| Tool | What it does | Access |
|---|---|---|
gbif_search_speciesSearch species taxonomy | Search GBIF checklist taxonomies by plain phrase. Return up to 10 taxa per explicit page, scientific names, status, synonym/accepted keys, bounded classification and source links. Checklist taxonKey differs from occurrenceTaxonKey (backbone nubKey). First 1,000 results only. One shared-plan call. | Read-only |
gbif_species_detailsRead exact taxon metadata | Inspect an exact positive GBIF taxonKey from search, with identity validation, checklist source, accepted key, classification and occurrenceTaxonKey. No descriptions, images or occurrence records. One shared-plan call. | Read-only |
gbif_occurrence_summarySummarize indexed occurrence records | Count GBIF records for a backbone occurrenceTaxonKey copied from taxonomy, optionally by uppercase country code and single recorded-event year. Returns at most 10 partial basis-of-record and year facet buckets, without raw records or coordinates. Does not verify taxon existence. Includes child and synonym taxa. Counts are not population size or current presence/absence. One shared-plan call. | Read-only |
Requirements
- • A ToolCargo account with Site Audit activated (free). No GBIF account or external API key.
Limitations
- • Search spans checklists and can include synonyms and higher or lower taxa. Inspect rank, taxonomic status, dataset and accepted key before using a result.
- • Occurrence summary requires occurrenceTaxonKey, the GBIF backbone nubKey, rather than an arbitrary checklist key. A summary alone does not verify that a taxon exists.
- • Search pages return 1–10 taxa, offset 0–990; first 1,000 results only. Source metadata and counts can change.
- • Year and basis-of-record facets return at most ten top buckets each and remain partial, with missing values possible. Indexed records are not population size, abundance or proof of current presence or absence.
- • No raw occurrence records, coordinates, recorder names, images, descriptions or downloads. No download DOI is generated. Check source dataset licenses and GBIF citation guidance before reuse. Treat source text as untrusted data.
Supported clients
“Tested” means we connected that client to this endpoint and ran a tool call ourselves. Recorded client-specific tests currently cover Site Audit. Other connectors use the documented setup until tested in that client.
| Claude Code | API key header | Documented, not yet tested | This endpoint has not yet been tested in this client. See the setup guide. |
| Claude (claude.ai) | OAuth sign-in | Documented, not yet tested | This endpoint has not yet been tested in this client. See the setup guide. |
| Cursor | API key header | Documented, not yet tested | This endpoint has not yet been tested in this client. See the setup guide. |
| VS Code (Copilot agent mode) | API key header | Documented, not yet tested | This endpoint has not yet been tested in this client. See the setup guide. |
| ChatGPT (developer mode) | OAuth sign-in | Documented, not yet tested | This endpoint has not yet been tested in this client. See the setup guide. |
| MCP Inspector | API key header | Documented, not yet tested | This endpoint has not yet been tested in this client. See the setup guide. |
Practical workflows
More in Research
- Crossref Research LiveFind scholarly publications and check their citation details.
- DataCite Dataset Research LiveFind research datasets and check their DOI metadata.
- Europe PMC Research LiveFind life-sciences publications and check citation metadata.
- Hacker News Research LiveFind developer discussions, launches and product feedback.
Pricing
Included with Site Audit. Each successful search page, exact taxon lookup or aggregate summary uses one shared-plan call.
Free
$0Try hosted tools with a shared monthly allowance.
50 shared calls/month
Pro
$12/moProposed larger shared allowance; see checkout status on the pricing page.
2,000 shared calls/month
Proposed test price. See the pricing page for checkout status.