Data Entry Forms
Taxon records can be created using both the Taxon and Determination forms. If you are unfamiliar with using data entry forms, read the article Data Entry in Specify.
Taxon Form
To create Taxon records using the Taxon data entry form, click Data Entry in the navigation menu. Then, click 
Taxon.
By default, the Taxon form includes fields from the Taxon table such as Name, Parent, Rank, Common Name, Source (of the Taxa), Author (this is often the person that described the particular taxa), synonym information, Child Taxa and Taxon Citations. It also includes information for Hybrids by combining the Hybrid Parent 1 field and the Hybrid Parent 2 field.
The following fields are required in the Taxon table:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Parent | This field is linked to the parent of the Taxon record you create. Use the text box or  button to find an existing record. Every Taxon record except for the root node must have a parent record. |
| Name | This is the name of the new Taxon record. This is what will appear in the Taxon tree. |
| Rank | This field contains the rank of the record in the Taxon tree. This rank must be lower in the tree hierarchy than the parent taxon. If a rank is enforced in your Taxon tree, you will not be able to set the rank lower than the enforced rank. |
Determination Form
You can create a new Taxon record from the Determination subview on the Collection Object form. Simply click the 
button next to the Taxon query combo box to pull up the Taxon form. After you save the new Taxon record, it will be linked to the Determination and Collection Object record.
Tree Viewer
To access the Tree Viewer, click 
Trees in the navigation bar and choose Taxon.
To create a Taxon record in the tree editor, click on the node you would like to use as the parent record. Then, click the button in the top right corner of the page, and the Taxon form will appear. The Parent and Rank fields will automatically be populated based on the node you selected.
The tree viewer has various other tools that allow you to move, synonymize, and desynonymize nodes. You can also create, edit, or delete tree ranks. To learn more about how to use the tree viewer, read the article Trees in Specify.
WorkBench
Taxa can be uploaded in spreadsheet format using the WorkBench. For more details and instructions, read the article Importing Taxa Using the WorkBench.
Upload Trees
The WorkBench can be used to import trees from sources like Catalogue of Life. The Index of /taxonfiles contains trees for various disciplines that are ready to be uploaded.
Upload Custom Spreadsheets
You can create your own spreadsheet of taxonomy data and even upload them alongside records from other tables, but it is important to note that uploading any data linked to a tree is slightly more complicated than uploading records from other tables. Taxon data sets must be organized in a specific way to link records to the correct parents and children and avoid duplicating records; these rules of organization are detailed in the following article: