This Privacy Policy explains how Faunal.org may collect, use, store, disclose, and protect information when you visit the site, read wildlife and biodiversity content, contact us by email, interact with site features, or use pages that may include analytics, cookies, advertising, affiliate links, charts, tables, external sources, or third-party services.
Faunal.org is an independent educational website about fauna, wildlife, biodiversity data, species checklists, occurrence records, conservation status, invasive species, habitats, and biodiversity map interpretation. We aim to collect only the information reasonably needed to operate, protect, improve, and support the site.
Important Notice
This Privacy Policy is provided for general transparency about how Faunal.org may handle information. It is not legal advice, a regulatory compliance audit, or a guarantee that every third-party tool used on or linked from the site follows the same practices. Privacy requirements may vary depending on your location, applicable law, browser settings, consent choices, and how third-party services process information.
By using Faunal.org, you understand that information may be processed as described in this Privacy Policy, the Cookie Policy, and any applicable notices shown on the site.
Information We May Collect
Faunal.org may collect information directly from you, automatically through normal website technology, or through third-party services that help operate, secure, analyze, or monetize the site. The specific information collected may depend on the tools active on the site at the time of your visit.
| Information Category | Examples | How It May Be Collected |
|---|---|---|
| Information You Provide | Your email address, name if included, message content, correction requests, accessibility reports, source notes, and other details you choose to send. | When you email support@faunal.org or otherwise communicate with us. |
| Technical Information | IP address, browser type, device type, operating system, language settings, referral source, pages viewed, timestamps, and basic server log data. | Automatically through hosting systems, security tools, analytics tools, and standard website technology. |
| Cookie and Identifier Data | Cookie IDs, consent preferences, session identifiers, advertising identifiers, analytics identifiers, and local storage data. | Through cookies, pixels, tags, scripts, analytics tools, advertising services, and similar technologies. |
| Usage Information | Visited pages, time on page, interaction patterns, clicks, scroll behavior, approximate location, device performance, and error reports. | Through analytics, performance tools, security systems, and site measurement technologies. |
| Advertising and Affiliate Data | Ad impressions, ad interactions, referral clicks, affiliate attribution data, fraud prevention signals, and general ad measurement data. | Through advertising providers, affiliate networks, partner links, or third-party commercial tools where used. |
| Sensitive Biodiversity Notes You Choose to Send | Species location details, nesting site information, wildlife crime concerns, private land references, or endangered species locality notes. | Only if you voluntarily include this information in an email or message. |
Information You Send by Email
Faunal.org does not use a public contact form on this page. If you contact us by email at support@faunal.org, we may receive your email address, name or organization if included, message content, attachments if any, and technical email metadata.
We may use email communications to review your inquiry, respond to you, investigate possible errors, handle accessibility reports, evaluate source corrections, improve site content, address technical issues, or protect the site from misuse.
Sensitive Information Notice
Please do not send passwords, payment details, confidential documents, private legal information, medical information, unnecessary personal data, or sensitive species location data unless it is essential to your message. If your concern involves wildlife crime, protected species disturbance, poaching, illegal trade, or urgent safety risks, contact the appropriate official authority.
Automatically Collected Information
When you visit Faunal.org, some information may be collected automatically through hosting logs, security tools, analytics services, cookies, scripts, or similar technologies. This may include your IP address, browser, device, operating system, approximate location, referring page, pages visited, date and time of access, and technical performance data.
Automatically collected information helps us operate the site, understand general usage patterns, protect against abuse, diagnose technical problems, measure page performance, improve navigation, and evaluate which wildlife and biodiversity topics may need clearer structure.
Cookies and Similar Technologies
Faunal.org may use cookies, local storage, pixels, tags, scripts, advertising identifiers, analytics identifiers, and similar technologies. These technologies may support essential site functions, consent preferences, security, analytics, performance measurement, advertising, affiliate attribution, and third-party services.
You can learn more about these technologies in the Cookie Policy. Browser settings, device settings, consent tools, and third-party privacy controls may allow you to block, delete, or manage certain cookies. Blocking cookies may affect some site functions, consent preferences, advertising behavior, analytics, or interactive features.
How We May Use Information
Faunal.org may use collected information for legitimate website, editorial, technical, security, communication, analytics, and compliance purposes. We do not use visitor information to create official biodiversity records, conservation assessments, legal determinations, or species distribution claims.
| Purpose | How Information May Be Used | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Site Operation | To load pages, maintain basic functionality, manage caching, and keep the site usable. | Serving wildlife articles, tables, charts, and policy pages correctly. |
| Security and Abuse Prevention | To detect spam, malicious traffic, attacks, scraping abuse, unauthorized access attempts, and technical misuse. | Using security logs to block harmful traffic patterns. |
| Analytics and Improvement | To understand general page performance, content usage, navigation patterns, and technical problems. | Improving pages about regional fauna, habitats, species data, or biodiversity maps. |
| Communication | To respond to emails, correction reports, accessibility issues, editorial concerns, or source questions. | Reviewing a message about an outdated conservation status note. |
| Editorial Quality | To review possible errors, update sources, clarify wording, and improve methodology explanations. | Checking a reader-submitted source correction for a species checklist. |
| Advertising and Monetization | To display ads, measure ad performance, prevent fraud, manage affiliate attribution, and support site funding where applicable. | Third-party advertising or affiliate services measuring interactions. |
| Legal and Compliance | To comply with applicable obligations, respond to lawful requests, enforce site policies, or protect rights and safety. | Preserving records related to abuse, security incidents, or legal claims. |
Legal Bases Where Required
Where privacy laws require a legal basis for processing personal information, Faunal.org may rely on one or more legal bases depending on the context. These may include consent, legitimate interests, performance of a requested communication, compliance with legal obligations, and protection of rights, safety, security, or site integrity.
| Legal Basis | Possible Use | Example Context |
|---|---|---|
| Consent | Used where consent is required for certain cookies, analytics, advertising, or optional features. | Accepting non-essential cookies through a consent tool where available. |
| Legitimate Interests | Used to operate, protect, improve, secure, and understand the site in a reasonable way. | Using server logs to prevent abuse or measure general page performance. |
| Communication Request | Used when you contact us and we process your information to review or respond to your message. | Replying to a correction request sent to support@faunal.org. |
| Legal Obligation | Used when processing is needed to comply with applicable law, lawful requests, or record obligations. | Responding to a valid legal request or preserving necessary records. |
| Protection of Rights and Safety | Used to protect the site, users, service providers, or others from fraud, abuse, threats, or harm. | Investigating malicious traffic or threatening communications. |
Advertising and Third-Party Ad Services
Faunal.org may display advertising or work with advertising providers. Advertising partners may use cookies, pixels, tags, scripts, device identifiers, or similar technologies to deliver ads, measure performance, limit repeated ads, detect invalid activity, prevent fraud, and personalize advertising where permitted.
Third-party advertising providers may collect information about your visits to Faunal.org and other websites. Their processing may be governed by their own privacy policies, cookie policies, consent tools, and advertising preference systems. Faunal.org does not control every data practice used by third-party advertising providers.
Advertising Notice
Advertising on Faunal.org should not be understood as a scientific endorsement, conservation endorsement, professional recommendation, or official approval of any product, service, organization, or claim.
Analytics and Performance Tools
Faunal.org may use analytics and performance tools to understand general visitor behavior, page performance, traffic sources, content popularity, browser compatibility, technical errors, and site usability. Analytics data may help us improve educational content about fauna, wildlife, biodiversity maps, habitats, species records, and conservation terminology.
Analytics information is not biodiversity data. Visitor traffic does not prove species presence, conservation importance, habitat condition, population trend, or ecological risk. It is used for website improvement, not scientific assessment.
Affiliate Links and Commercial Partners
Faunal.org may use affiliate links or partner links where appropriate. If you click an affiliate link, a third-party affiliate network, merchant, or partner may collect information about the click, referral, purchase, or attribution event. These third parties may use cookies or similar technologies according to their own policies.
Affiliate or partner relationships do not control scientific claims, conservation interpretation, species status, taxonomy, or biodiversity data methodology on Faunal.org. Readers should review third-party terms and privacy practices before using external products, services, or platforms.
Third-Party Services and External Links
Faunal.org may link to or rely on third-party services such as hosting providers, security services, analytics platforms, advertising networks, affiliate networks, content delivery networks, font providers, email services, chart libraries, biodiversity databases, government websites, scientific institutions, conservation organizations, and external reference sources.
External websites and third-party services are not controlled by Faunal.org. We are not responsible for their privacy practices, cookie behavior, data collection, security, accessibility, licensing terms, availability, or content accuracy. If you follow an external link, the privacy policy of that external site or service may apply.
Public Biodiversity Data and Personal Data
Faunal.org may discuss public biodiversity datasets, occurrence records, species checklists, museum records, citizen-science observations, conservation assessments, taxonomic sources, and official biodiversity portals. These sources may contain information connected to collectors, observers, institutions, dataset publishers, coordinates, dates, or record metadata.
When Faunal.org discusses biodiversity records, the purpose is educational and scientific interpretation, not profiling individuals. However, some external biodiversity platforms may display observer names, collector names, institution names, or record metadata according to their own policies and licenses. Readers should review the privacy and data policies of the original biodiversity data source when needed.
Sensitive Species Location Data
Some wildlife information may involve sensitive species locations, nesting sites, den sites, breeding colonies, endangered species, poaching risks, illegal trade risks, private land, or vulnerable habitats. Faunal.org does not encourage users to send sensitive location data unless it is necessary and appropriate.
If you voluntarily send sensitive species location information, we may use it only to review the issue you raised, assess whether public content should be corrected or limited, or decide whether a safer general description is more appropriate. In some cases, an official conservation authority, wildlife agency, or law enforcement body may be the correct recipient for sensitive or urgent information.
AI-Assisted Tools and Privacy
Faunal.org may use editorial tools, including AI-assisted tools, for drafting, formatting, summarizing, organizing, quality review, readability improvement, visual planning, or content workflow. These tools should not be treated as sources for biodiversity facts.
We aim to avoid submitting unnecessary personal information, confidential information, sensitive species location details, or private communications into AI-assisted tools unless there is a reasonable editorial or operational need and appropriate safeguards are considered. Users should avoid sending unnecessary sensitive information in emails to Faunal.org.
How Information May Be Shared
Faunal.org may share information with service providers, technical partners, advertising providers, analytics providers, affiliate networks, hosting companies, security tools, email providers, professional advisers, or authorities where necessary for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy.
| Recipient Category | Possible Reason for Sharing | Important Limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting and Infrastructure Providers | To host the website, store logs, serve pages, maintain uptime, and support technical operation. | These providers may process technical data as part of normal website delivery. |
| Security and Anti-Abuse Tools | To detect spam, attacks, malicious traffic, unauthorized access, scraping abuse, or other misuse. | Security processing may include IP addresses, request data, browser signals, and log information. |
| Analytics Providers | To understand traffic, performance, page usage, technical problems, and site improvement opportunities. | Analytics practices depend on the provider, configuration, consent settings, and applicable law. |
| Advertising and Affiliate Partners | To deliver ads, measure performance, prevent fraud, and attribute referrals where applicable. | Third-party advertising and affiliate providers may apply their own policies. |
| Email and Communication Providers | To receive, store, filter, and respond to messages sent to support@faunal.org. | Email systems may process message content, sender details, attachments, and metadata. |
| Professional Advisers or Authorities | To comply with law, protect rights, handle disputes, respond to lawful requests, or address serious safety concerns. | Only where reasonably necessary or legally required. |
We Do Not Sell Personal Information as Our Core Business
Faunal.org is an educational wildlife and biodiversity website. We do not operate as a data broker, and we do not sell visitor contact messages as a core business activity. However, some privacy laws may define certain advertising, analytics, or cross-context tracking activities broadly as a “sale,” “sharing,” or similar disclosure.
Where such laws apply, users may have rights to opt out of certain types of advertising or data sharing. Available choices may depend on your location, browser, consent settings, third-party tools, and applicable law.
Data Retention
Faunal.org may retain information for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of information, operational need, legal requirements, security concerns, correction history, technical logs, email records, and whether a dispute or abuse investigation is involved.
| Information Type | Possible Retention Reason | General Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Email Messages | To respond, maintain correction history, handle follow-up questions, or document site issues. | Kept as long as reasonably useful for communication, editorial, legal, or security purposes. |
| Server Logs | To diagnose technical problems, secure the site, and investigate abuse. | Usually retained for limited technical periods unless needed for security or legal reasons. |
| Analytics Data | To understand site performance and broad usage trends. | Retention depends on analytics provider settings and applicable consent choices. |
| Cookie Preferences | To remember consent or preference choices. | Stored according to the consent tool, browser settings, or cookie duration. |
| Security Records | To prevent abuse, spam, attacks, or unauthorized access. | May be retained longer where needed to protect the site or investigate incidents. |
Data Security
Faunal.org aims to use reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect information from unauthorized access, misuse, loss, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include hosting security, access controls, spam protection, monitoring, software updates, and other practical safeguards.
No website, email system, hosting provider, analytics tool, advertising service, or internet transmission can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Users should avoid sending highly sensitive information unless necessary and should understand that email is not always a secure communication method.
International Data Transfers
Faunal.org may use service providers, hosting infrastructure, analytics tools, advertising services, email systems, or technical platforms located in different countries. As a result, information may be processed or stored outside your country of residence.
Privacy protections and legal rights may vary between jurisdictions. Where required, transfers may rely on applicable safeguards, provider terms, consent mechanisms, contractual protections, or other lawful transfer methods.
Your Privacy Rights
Depending on your location and applicable law, you may have rights related to your personal information. These may include the right to request access, correction, deletion, restriction, portability, objection, withdrawal of consent, or information about certain disclosures.
To make a privacy request, contact Faunal.org at support@faunal.org. Please use a clear subject line and provide enough information for us to understand and verify your request. We may need to ask for additional information to confirm your identity or clarify the scope of the request.
Privacy Request Note
Privacy rights may depend on your jurisdiction, the type of information involved, legal exceptions, security needs, and whether the information is controlled by Faunal.org or by a third-party service.
European, UK, and Similar Privacy Rights
If you are located in a jurisdiction with data protection laws such as the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or similar regions, you may have rights to access, correct, delete, restrict, object to processing, request portability, withdraw consent, or lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, subject to applicable conditions and exceptions.
Where consent is used for certain cookies or optional processing, you may be able to withdraw or change that consent through the available cookie preference tool, browser settings, or by contacting us where appropriate.
California and Other U.S. State Privacy Rights
If you are located in California or another U.S. state with applicable privacy laws, you may have rights to know, access, correct, delete, or opt out of certain uses of personal information, subject to legal limits and verification requirements.
Some advertising or analytics practices may be considered “sharing,” “targeted advertising,” or similar activity under certain privacy laws. Available opt-out options may depend on the advertising tools, consent settings, browser signals, and third-party services used on the site.
Global Privacy Control and Do Not Track
Some browsers, extensions, or devices may send privacy signals such as Global Privacy Control or Do Not Track. Technical and legal treatment of these signals can vary by jurisdiction, provider, and implementation. Faunal.org may not respond to every browser signal in the same way unless required or supported by applicable tools.
Users may also manage privacy choices through browser cookie settings, device privacy controls, consent tools, advertising preference systems, and third-party opt-out mechanisms where available.
Children’s Privacy
Faunal.org is intended as a general educational and informational website. It is not directed to children under 13 and does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If a parent or guardian believes that a child has provided personal information to Faunal.org, they may contact us at support@faunal.org.
If we become aware that we have collected personal information from a child in a way that requires deletion under applicable law, we will take reasonable steps to delete that information.
User-Submitted Corrections and Editorial Notes
If you send a correction, source recommendation, accessibility report, or editorial note, we may use the information you provide to review and improve site content. We may keep a record of correction-related communications where useful for editorial accuracy, source history, or dispute prevention.
Submitting a correction does not guarantee publication, attribution, response, or acceptance. If you do not want your name, organization, location, or other personal details considered in connection with an editorial request, avoid including them unless necessary.
No Emergency or Sensitive Reporting Channel
Faunal.org is not an emergency service, wildlife rescue organization, law enforcement body, conservation authority, veterinary provider, or official reporting channel. Email to Faunal.org should not be used for urgent wildlife emergencies, dangerous animal encounters, suspected wildlife crime, active poaching, illegal trade reports, protected species incidents, or time-sensitive safety concerns.
For urgent or official matters, contact local emergency services, wildlife authorities, conservation agencies, law enforcement, licensed rescue organizations, veterinarians, or other qualified local professionals.
Changes to This Privacy Policy
Faunal.org may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in site features, cookies, analytics tools, advertising services, service providers, legal requirements, editorial practices, or operational needs. The updated version will be posted on this page with a revised date.
Continued use of Faunal.org after changes are posted means that the updated Privacy Policy applies to your use of the site from that point forward.
Contact
For privacy questions, privacy requests, correction-related concerns, accessibility issues, or questions about how Faunal.org handles information, contact us by email at support@faunal.org. Please include a clear subject line and enough detail for your request to be reviewed.
Last updated: June 7, 2026