The package lwdataexplorer retrieves biodiversity, environmental or genetic data from the projects supported by LifeWatch Belgium. These data are also available to explore and download through the LifeWatch Data Explorer: an R Shiny application that allows you to check and download data from your browser.

In the marine domain, LifeWatch provides data services for a large and broad user community dealing with a variety of data types. Activities include provision of data tools and services for taxonomic, ecological, omics, biogeographic, environmental and biological observation data. Tools for data archiving, access, quality control, standardization, harmonization, analysis and publication are integrated in a Marine Virtual Research Environment (Marine VRE). In this regard, the LifeWatch Marine VRE aspires to be the transparent gateway to access, analyze and develop marine data resources. The Marine VRE is built on three components: - Through the "Access" page, the user can retrieve marine biodiversity and ecosystem data. For all resources listed, a description of the data on offer is available and connecting web links are displayed. - Arriving at the "Analyze" page, one can find applications and tools for advanced calculations, modelling and data processing. Through these environments, state-of-the-art workflows and modelling approaches are shared and accessible to all. - Finally, the "Develop" page allows the user to access data services, as well as develop their own. Documented R scripts and tutorials, outputs from expert workshops and detailed methodological workflow of certain data products or scientific publications are only a few examples of how Marine VRE puts the sharing of data and expertise to practice. Now, a marine researcher can access a multitude of available data, find the appropriate tools for analysis, apply and develop existing expertise through data services. Facilitating a scientist's pursuit of knowledge, the LifeWatch Marine VRE contributes to high quality marine research.

The LifeWatch and EMODnet Biology QC Tool allows you to assess to what extend a dataset published on an IPT or a DwC-A file meets the EMODnet Biology Data Quality Criteria. This tool is based on the EMODnetBioCheck R package (https://github.com/EMODnet/EMODnetBiocheck) that was created using the obistools package (https://github.com/iobis/obistools) and it is available from the LifeWatch services at http://rshiny.lifewatch.be/BioCheck/. The Biocheck tool performs a detailed Quality Control on OBIS-env datasets and occurrence core dataset. It provides a way for a visual exploration of the dataset and highlights potential issues.

BVMtool is a set of R scripts automating marine biological valuation calculations based on the biological valuation concept as developed by Derous et al. 2007 and described by Deneudt et al 2013. Based on a recommended format for data input, the script facilitates the calculation of a number of valuation questions that are commonly solved when observational data on species densities are available. The results of the valuation questions are summarized in final scores for each ecosystem component and can be combined with the final results obtained for other ecosystem components. Subzones can be defined as raster grid cells of a desired size or can be based on polygons of a habitat classification provided by the user. The script also offers the possibility to run a number of quality control procedures on the input data, including a taxonomic quality control using the web services built on the World Register of Marine Species.

This interactive online tool gives access to all sensor data collected in the framework of the Flemish LifeWatch project, and provides an interface to explore and analyze these data. Several thematic portals have been set up as part of the Data Explorer: - Underway Data Explorer - Station Data Explorer - Zooplankton Data Explorer - GPS Bird Tracking Data Explorer - Fish Telemetry Data Explorer - Batcorder Data Explorer - CPOD (marine mammals) Data Explorer Within the RShiny LifeWatch Data Explorer, five general sections are available to explore, plot, visualize and download data. Some of the more recent data is temporarily under moratorium and therefore protected by password access. The LifeWatch Data Explorer is built using RShiny server, Leaflet, ggplot2, PLotly, Dygraph and DataTables. The system is able to query MSSQL, PostgreSQL, Geoserver (WFS) and MongoDB servers.

pyhydrophone is an open-source Python package that has been developed to ease the import of underwater sound data recorded with a hydrophone to python, so postprocessing and AI can be easily performed on the data afterwards. Different recorders can be added with their different way of reading metadata, so the users do not have to worry about the format but just about the outcome.

A tool for Quality Controlling Darwin Core based datasets according to the EMODnet Biology guidelines. The tool performs a thorough QC on OBIS-env datasets and occurrence core datasets. It can use an IPT resource URL as input. Quality controlling a dataset is fundamental in order to ensure its appropriate usage. The EMODnetBiocheck R package is developed in the framework of the LifeWatch and EMODnet Biology projects, and managed by the EurOBIS (European Ocean Biodiversity Information System) Data Management Team at the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ). It helps users to Quality Control their (marine) biological datasets by performing a varied number of quality checks on both published and unpublished datasets. This R package also allows a thorough visual exploration of the dataset, while highlighting potential issues within the dataset. The R package can be used on: i) public IPT resources; ii) loaded data tables. The only requirement to use the R package is the existence of an Occurrence table in the dataset, although the analysis reaches its full potential using an IPT resource with OBIS-ENV data format (Core: "Event"; Extensions: "Occurrence" and "Extended Measurements or Facts").

EurOBIS is the european node of the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS) and part of the LifeWatch Belgium Species Information Backbone and EMODnet Biology. It aims at containing a wide range of taxonomic and species related data; the main goal being the integration of distributed biodiversity data repositories and operating facilities. EurOBIS plays an important role in this as the central storage facility for marine biogeographic data from all over Europe. The EurOBIS data infrastructure is used as the central hub for making biological data available within the biological lot of EMODnet. Through EMODnet Biology the biodiversity occurrence data are available as a Web Feature Service (WFS) in accordance with the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) specifications. This webservice supports requests for geographical feature data (with vector geometry and attributes).

Benthos Ecosystem Quality Index (BEQI). BEQI is a biological index that is used to assess the state of the benthos of coastal and transitional waters for the Water Framework Directive. Taking into consideration the large intrinsic variability of estuarine and coastal systems and the importance of ecosystem functioning within a water body, Ysebaert & Herman (2003) advocate a multilevel scale-dependent approach for the classification of the quality elements in coastal and transitional waters. The proposed multilevel approach consists of three levels: (1) level 1 - Ecosystem level; (2) level 2 - Habitat level; (3) level 3 - Community (within habitat) level. Where suitable input and reference data is provided, the tool will calculate Ecosystem quality scores and produce a list of species that are responsible for observed deviations from the reference state.

This online and interactive environment provides access to all data of the European Tracking Network. The VRE includes a database for storage and integration of acoustic telemetry data and a number of analytical tools for analysing the data using R that are: - the LifeWatch Data Explorer for fish telemetry, a RShiny GUI for data exploration; - an RStudio IDE that allows the user to develop and run R scripts online on the available telemetry data; - an Rpackage that incorporates specific functions to start a smooth analysis of telemetry data. The ETN data management platform is an online web application to store, access and share aquatic telemetry data and metadata. The portal is open to all European users for data management of telemetry data in marine, estuarine and freshwater environments. ETN now contains data of 15 fish species. Currently ETN supports acoustic telemetry data, but aims to extend this to different telemetry techniques (e.g. PIT data-storage tags and satellite tags) to be able to monitor habitat use and migration patterns of a range of species in the aquatic environment. On a technical note, the portal requires the receiver and deployment metadata, as well as the transmitter tag and animal metadata before detection data can be uploaded. The uploaded data are subjected to quality control. Access is password protected and data moratorium rules are in place. The ETN data portal is developed by the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) as part of the Flemish contribution to LifeWatch. New developments and additional features are added on a continuous basis. The web application is built using PHP (using the Symfony framework) for the back-end side and Bootstrap/jQuery/Datatables/… (among others) to facilitate the development of the front-end side.