The collection of modern echinoderms in the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History comprises more than 30,000 lots, and ranks as the third largest collection of echinoderms in the U.S. The collection has grown rapidly over the past ten years by absorbing the large collection in the Allan Hancock Foundation of the University of Southern California, as well as several smaller orphaned collections. The Los Angeles County Museum's collection is the most important research resource in the western U.S. for echinoderm specialists and marine biologists using this taxonomic group in studies of ecology and environmental management. Dr. Gordon Hendler, Curator of Echinoderms, proposes extensive curatorial improvements to the collection, including installation of a high density storage system and integration and reorganization of the newly acquired orphaned collections. The proposed curatorial activities will increase the availability and utilization of these important systematic reference collections. Systematists, ecologists, and evolutionary biologists are increasingly dependent on access to collections such as this. The continued growth and proper curation of collections in natural history museums will yield important research dividends in the study of biological diversity.
