natuuritem

Natuuritem is a Dutch term used to refer to a single element of nature, usually as an entry in inventories, databases, or educational materials. The term is formed from natuur meaning nature and item indicating an individual record or artefact. A natuuritem can denote living organisms (plants, animals, fungi), non-living natural features (geological formations, bodies of water, soils), or natural artifacts (fossils, minerals).

In practice, a natuuritem carries structured data to identify and describe it. Common fields include an item ID, category or taxonomic rank, scientific name, optional common name, geographic location (coordinates), habitat, date of observation or collection, observer or collector, source or collection institution, and any notes or conservation status.

Natuuritems are used in biodiversity inventories, nature management and conservation planning, field surveys, citizen-science platforms, and museum or educational catalogs. For example, a natuuritem in a national database might be a herbarium specimen with barcode, GPS coordinates, and specimen metadata.

When integrated into larger data systems, natuuritems can be modeled using international standards such as Darwin Core to enable data sharing. See also related concepts like natuurobject and biodiversity databases, which cover similar ideas in different contexts.