[Nhcoll-l] how should we encode vague dates in specimen database?

[Schultz, Eric]

We are cleaning up entries in a legacy database so that our data can be imported into a properly configured collections database.  Exact dates will be imported in a text string mm/dd/yyyy.  But how to render a vague date referring only to season, such as 'Spring 1984', or if only the year was recorded? Is it better to record as missing data, record as an erroneous but exact date such as 01/01/1984, or place at the midpoint of the season?  Whatever we do we will have a 'verbatim' field that preserves the original entry, but we want to have a version of collection date that is useful and searchable.  Thanks for any assistance!

Eric T. Schultz
Professor, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Coordinator, Joint BS-MS Degree in Biodiversity and Conservation Biology
Director, Vertebrate Biodiversity Collections
Chair, General Education Oversight Committee
University of Connecticut
Storrs, CT 06269-3043
eric.schultz at uconn.edu<mailto:eric.schultz at uconn.edu>
860.486.4692


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