The Conner Museum of Natural History at Washington State University consists of nearly 73,000 vertebrate specimens that are used for research, teaching, and public outreach. This project will alleviate collection storage restrictions and accomplish curation needs. The Museum?s specimen cases are full, which prevents (1) the addition of new collections and (2) the archival storage of approximately 16,400 prepared specimens held currently in temporary storage. Additionally, approximately 500 specimens kept currently in frozen storage require curation and incorporation in archival storage. These concerns will be resolved by adding sixty new archival quality cases for specimen storage and the curation of frozen specimens. Ultra cold freezers will be added for storage of tissues for molecular studies. Data for all specimens added to the collection will be served on the Internet.
This project will result primarily in (1) better storage of specimens to promote their long-term preservation and diverse use, (2) greater accessibility of specimens and collection data to researchers, students, and the public, and (3) opportunities for future growth of the Museum. Graduate and undergraduate students will be trained to prepare and curate specimens and manage museum data. A weblog aimed at the public will follow project progress and explain associated ideas.
