The online collections database of the Department of Ornithology includes records for our five catalogued collections: our study skin collection; our skeleton collection; our spirit specimen collection; our egg and nest collection; and our frozen tissue collection. The effort to capture our legacy collection data into a database began in earnest in 2001. As of 2017, all records for our entire catalogued collection had been captured and made available online via the search link below.
The records in this database were transcribed verbatim from our handwritten catalogs and have not yet been proofed for errors or verified against the collection. Many of the scientific names currently recorded in the database are outdated. We are in the process of standardizing scientific names in accordance with the Howard and Moore Checklist Fourth Edition. This standardization is ongoing and for the time being many specimens are listed under synonyms of their current names. Moreover, many outdated names have not yet been assigned to families in this database. Similarly, locality data have not yet been standardized, and many records currently have outdated geographic names or partial information.
Search results obtained herein are intended to provide individual researchers with information about our available holdings in the areas of their interest. Such information should not be used as a primary data source and should not be incorporated into institutional databases. It is incumbent upon the researcher to verify the data and identifications associated with specimens.