FaunaHub

Animal coverage gaps

An honest map of where FaunaHub's animal coverage is still thin or planned. Naming a gap is how we make sure no major group is forgotten as coverage grows.

Why “missing” does not mean ignored

FaunaHub is built in verified batches, so at any moment some major groups are well covered and others are queued. Listing the gaps openly keeps the project honest and makes sure whole branches of the animal tree — especially invertebrates and the deep sea — are not forgotten.

Where coverage is thin or planned

Invertebrate coverage gaps

Invertebrates make up the great majority of described animal species, so FaunaHub's coverage is representative and expanding, not complete. Recent batches strengthened arachnids, annelids, and molluscs, but many groups still have few or no profiles.

Examples on the roadmap: harvestmen & pseudoscorpions, ragworms & bristle worms, sand dollars & brittle stars, periwinkles & murex snails, rotifers & water bears, bryozoans

Deep-sea coverage gaps

FaunaHub's ocean depth pages now link a substantial set of dedicated deep-sea profiles, from anglerfish and vampire squid to vent and seafloor animals. Some well-known deep-sea fish remain to add.

Examples on the roadmap: viperfish, fangtooth, cookiecutter shark, tripod fish, deep-sea amphipod

Regional fauna coverage gaps

The continents layer is representative, not complete. Each continent has well-known animals still to add, especially smaller mammals, regional birds, and herpetofauna.

Examples on the roadmap: saiga, markhor, Tasmanian devil, numbat, quokka, dingo

Conservation (Red List) coverage gaps

The endangered-animals layer holds many index records but only a limited number of detailed profiles. More threatened species deserve full, source-backed profiles with licensed images.

Examples on the roadmap: additional Critically Endangered mammals, threatened amphibians, threatened marine fish, more region-specific species

Domestic, farm & urban gaps

Common domestic, farm, and urban-adapted animals are only partly covered, and should be clearly labelled as domestic or human-associated rather than wild fauna.

Examples on the roadmap: chicken, turkey, donkey, opossum, starling

Groups currently marked thin or planned

  • FlatwormsPlanned expansion
    planarian, tapeworm, fluke
  • NematodesPlanned expansion
    roundworm, hookworm
  • SpongesThin coverage
    sea sponge, barrel sponge, tube sponge
  • Other InvertebratesThin coverage
    peanut worm, arrow worm, rotifer, acorn worm, spoon worm
  • Planktonic AnimalsPlanned expansion
    krill, copepod, salp, comb jelly
  • Invasive & Introduced SpeciesPlanned expansion
    cane toad, lionfish, european starling, zebra mussel

How FaunaHub prioritises future species

We weigh several factors: how big a coverage gap a group represents, how well-known and searched its animals are, whether authoritative sources exist, and whether properly licensed images are available. The full plan lives on the coverage roadmap.

Sources

Frequently Asked Questions

Does “missing” mean FaunaHub will never cover these animals?
No. Missing means not yet covered. These groups are queued for future verified batches. We add profiles only when sources and (for detailed pages) licensed images are available, so coverage grows steadily rather than all at once.
Why not just add the missing animals quickly?
Speed at the cost of quality produces thin, weakly sourced pages. FaunaHub prioritises source-backed content and licensed images over raw page counts.

Last updated: