The University of Minnesota Bell Museum's research and teaching collections of birds total over 40,000 specimens and represent a scientific resource that is both national and international in scope. Of particular importance are series from the Upper Midwest and Southwestern U.S., Mexico, Philippines, and both polar regions; the collection also contains significant series of seabirds, hybrids, known-age individuals, and rare and extinct species, many with historical information dating back into the past century. An important Bell Museum goal, now nearing completion, is the protection of these valuable specimens through security measures and the replacement of deteriorating specimen cases. The primary goal of this project is to make the research collection more readily available to the scientific community through modern computerization methods and equipment. Following a comprehensive survey of fifty North American museums, many already with computerized collections, the Bell Museum will develop a computerization program for its bird collection based not only on the most recent computer hardware and software technology, but also on the advice and experience of these many institutions.
