In recent weeks we’ve learned of two distinct and unrelated projects both going by the name “Map of Life.” One, from the US, is mapping global species distributions and another from the UK is mapping evolutionary convergence — that is, when unrelated organisms evolve similar adaptations to environmental or selective pressures. Both of these resource would contribute nicely to a biomimicry education program, providing opportunities for students to search for and interpret biological and ecological information.

The US-based Map of Life is a collaboration between scholars at Yale University and the University of Colorado at Boulder. The project brings together and makes searchable all kinds of information about global species distribution from average ranges to point observations, and displays them visually in Google Maps. The Map is currently released in a demo version that includes 25,000 terrestrial vertebrates. When it’s finished it will include every known plant and animal species on the planet.

Hailing from the UK, the University of Cambridge Map of Life website allows you to explore the way that similar adaptive solutions have repeatedly evolved from unrelated starting points, as though following a ‘map’. The site includes hundreds of examples of evolutionary convergence from physical traits (see camera eyes) to complex behaviors (see agriculture).

From our perspective, what ties these resources together (besides a shared name) is their relevance to the biomimicry design process and application to biomimicry education.

A key facet of biomimicry is an understanding of place and how species adapt to and optimize their local environment. Therefore, the ability to quickly search and display regional biodiversity information is a valuable tool. Using the US Map of Life, one might devise a learning exercise in which students search for organisms in their local ecosystem and find a strategy that could help them address a local problem

The Cambridge Map of Life also has clear connections to a fundamental tenant of biomimicry: that we should pay attention to evolutionary strategies and the patterns that emerge as life faces similar challenges.  Chock full of fascinating examples of evolutionary convergence, the website could be a great resource for examples of successful strategies action across species, as well as a research and inspiration tool for a design challenge.

What do you think?  Share with us how you see the value of these resources in use in your program?