Search Help
Both the Site Search and the Advanced Datasheet Search provide a Google-like experience. They are easy-to-use with the most relevant items returned towards the top of the results. There is also an Expert Search available for the datasheets where the user can use coding terms to increase the precision of the results returned
This provides a general search across all content in the compendium. Use this if you want to find:
- All the information on a particular species
- Content in the library (including CABI Full Text articles), glossary or abstracts.
Do not use this for detailed searches of the datasheet content, when the Advanced Datasheet Search should be used.
This provides an easy-to-use search of the core database information found in full datasheets. Use this if you want to find:
- All invasive species and animal diseases of a particular country/region (simply type in the country or region);
- The invasive species of a specific taxonomic groups (simply type in the order or family position in the taxonomic tree)
Combinations of the above terms can be made but any Boolean operators used (AND, NOT, OR) must be capitalised, e.g. 'Sweden NOT France' to find the invasive species and animal diseases present in Sweden but not present in France.
Within the Advanced Search on the ISC, we have hidden additional metadata and a controlled vocabulary to increase the precision of important searches. We have produced a Controlled Vocabularly pdf to download. Use this additional feature to search for:
- All invasive species native to a particular country/region
- All invasive species known to be invasive in a particular country/region
- The habitat of any invasive species (see the expert search and advanced search help pdf for the syntax to use);
- The pathway of introduction of the invasive species (see the expert search and advanced search help pdf for the syntax to use);
- The host of any invasive species (see the expert search and advanced search help pdf for the syntax to use);
- Useful classification subsets of species (see search example 8 near the bottom of this page).
Presented below are a number of examples of how the Advanced Datasheet Search can be used to search the full detailed datasheets in the Invasive Species Compendium.
1. To find all invasive species and animal disease in a particular country
Invasive species and animal diseases reported present in Australia
Description: This search returns the full datasheets of invasive species and animal diseases reported as present in Australia
Search string: Australia
2. To find all invasive species that are known natives to a particular country
Native invasive species to Australia
Description: This search returns the full datasheets of invasive species that are known to be native to Australia. The NAT code signifies that you want to search our database for only species native to the geographical area that you are searching. Please remember to use quotes around the entire phrase.
Search string: "NAT Australia"
3. To find all the reported introduced species to a particular country
Introduced species to Peru
Description: This search returns the full datasheets of introduced species to Peru. The INT code signifies that you want to search our database for only species introduced to the geographical area that you are searching. Please remember to use quotes around the entire phrase.
Search string: "INT Peru"
4. To find invasive species that are reported within a particular habitat
All invasive species in Freshwater habitats
Description: This search returns the full datasheets of invasive species that are known to recorded in Freshwater habitats. The HAB code signifies that you want to search our database for only species native to the geographical area that you are searching. Remember to use quotes around the entire phrase. Please see the search help pdf for the full list of habitats.
Search string: "HAB Freshwater"
5. To find the invasive species that have been reported as being transported/spread by a particular pathway
All invasive species known to be transported in ballast water
Description: This search returns the full datasheets of invasive species that are known to have been transported via ship ballast water. Remember to use quotes around any entire phrase. Please see the search help pdf for the full list of pathways.
Search string: ballast
6. To find all invasive species that have a particular 'risk or impact'
All invasive species that are reported to be highly mobile in their local environment
Description: This search returns the full datasheets of invasive species that are reported to be highly mobile in their local environment. Within the advanced search, you can enter any of the phrases that are listed in the 'Risks and Impact Factors' table. Remember to use quotes around the entire phrase. Please see the search help pdf for the full available list of phrases.
Search string: "Highly mobile locally"
7. To find all the invasive species of a particular known host species
All invasive species known to be present on, or associated with the host species Abies alba (European Silver Fir)
Description: This search returns all full datasheets of known invasive species to be hosted or associated with that particular species. Remember to use the quotes aroun the entire phrase, including the HOS.
Search string: "HOS Albies alba"
8. To find useful classifictions of subsets of species
We have added controlled terms to the full datasheets so that you can pull out important subsets of species. Any of the below can be combined with any of the above search strings.
Please use the following syntax in any searches, the quotes are important on phrases below.
"animal diseases"
"aquatic organisms"
"invasive species"
pathogens
"plant parasitic nematodes"
"plant pathogenic bacteria"
"plant pathogenic fungi"
"plant pathogens"
"plant pests"
"plant viruses"
"vertebrate pests"
weeds
Using the same 12 classification terms above in the Site Search will bring back all the relevant literature, as all the biblographic records (full text and abstracts) have similarly been classified with these terms.