MiRA › Why MiRA
MiRA (Multilayer Interactive Rendering Application) is a free, browser-based, installation-free tool for interactive visualisation of multilayer networks in ecology and biology. It is built for one job and does it well: letting you see and interactively explore a multilayer network — including bipartite and geographically explicit ones — without installing software or writing code.
Several excellent tools touch multilayer networks, but each was built for a different job, so the right choice depends on what you actually need to do:
While each is well suited to its own purpose, none is a browser-based, no-code tool designed specifically for interactively visualizing multilayer networks — with dedicated support for bipartite structures and geographic layer placement together. If you are looking for a muxViz or Arena3Dweb alternative focused on interactive visualization rather than analysis or programming, MiRA is built for exactly that.
MiRA is the only tool that brings the whole combination together in one place. It runs in any web browser with no installation, no account, and no server, and it needs no coding — yet it still integrates with R through the emln package for those who want it. It renders bipartite networks such as plant–pollinator and host–parasite webs with a dedicated two-set layout, and it places layers on a geographic map by their coordinates — the two capabilities ecological multilayer networks most often require, which no other single tool combines.
On top of that, MiRA offers seven linked visualization modes, live filtering and weight thresholding, and cross-layer highlighting that lights up a species in every layer at once — so a network stays legible even as it grows complex. A whole session, data included, saves to a single file that reopens the full visualization, and any view exports to a publication-quality PNG, JPG, or PDF. Because everything happens in the browser, sharing MiRA with a collaborator is just sharing a link.
| Runs in any browser | No installation, no account, no server |
| No coding required | Point-and-click; optional R via the emln package |
| Bipartite networks | Dedicated two-set layout (e.g. plant–pollinator, host–parasite) |
| Geographic layers | Map Mode places layers on a world map by coordinates |
| Visualization modes | Seven linked modes: Network, Map, Layer, Grid, Meta-Network, Dashboard, Data |
| Interactive exploration | Live filtering, weight thresholding, and cross-layer highlighting |
| Data in | JSON or CSV upload, or plot directly from the emln R package |
| Reproducible output | Self-contained session file (data included); export PNG, JPG, PDF |
| Cost and licence | Free and open source, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 |
Ready to try it? Open MiRA and load one of the built-in example networks, or read the manual and data format guide to bring your own.
Other tools above are described by their primary design purpose; capabilities evolve between versions, so consult each project's own documentation for its current feature set. Claims about MiRA are drawn from its source code and manual.