In 1997 the University of California Museum of Paleontology (UCMP) accepted responsibility for the extensive invertebrate collection (170,000 fossils from 12,100 localities) from the United State Geological Survey (USGS), Menlo Park. Unfortunately, the comprehensive documentation stored with the fossils was not preserved as archival material and is deteriorating. Moreover, during the move the collection was scrambled, many of the wooden cases damaged, and the doors lost. In 1998, one third of the collection was integrated into UCMP's main collection. This project will (1) re-house the remaining two thirds of the collection in museum-grade cabinets, (2) reorganize, re-label, and digitally capture the contents of the drawers, and (3) digitally capture and store the documentation in archival media.
This collection, largely from the West coast of North America from the last 25 million years, is unique and irreplaceable. It has generated over 1,000 publications, including systematic and biostratigraphic studies, paleoecological and paleoclimatic research, resource assessments, and geologic surveys. This project will provide important curatorial experiences for graduate students and will also engage undergraduate students in authentic research activities. The Berkeley's Biology Scholars Program, which promotes the success of students from economic, gender, ethnic and cultural groups historically underrepresented in biology, will assist with undergraduate recruitment. The project will also provide increased science awareness to a broader public audience as we make available, both physically and digitally, this world-class paleontological collection.
