Compacterization of the IMNH Vertebrate Paleontology Collection to Enhance Access and Research Use

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A grant has been awarded to the Idaho Museum of Natural History (IMNH) under the direction of M. Thompson to improve accessibility and storage of the museum's Vertebrate Paleontology (VP) collection. In scientific terminology, the collection is particularly strong in animals from the Neogene Period (23.8 to 1.81 million years ago), and is especially rich in mammals of the Hemphillian, Blancan, and late Rancholabrean Stages (i.e., ~11,000 to 9,000,000 years ago). The collection was gathered from across Idaho and neighboring states. The growth of the collection in the last ten years has resulted in overcrowded storage conditions, which in turn will lead to eventual deterioration and loss of specimens. It is the goal and scope of this project to cost-effectively correct these deficiencies by improving storage to accommodate up to 100,000 specimens and lots, facilitate cataloging of items and enhance scholarly access.To accomplish this, the IMNH had two basic options: to expand its available space, or to use existing space more efficiently. IMNH plans to purchase/install a system of compact, space-efficient storage racks with accompanying all-metal cabinets and drawers for storing the specimens. As items are transferred into the new storage facilities, all will be updated to current collection standards as identified by the Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections using archival quality materials. The catalogue will be updated, and a full entry made in IMNH databases for ease of locating items and to promote the collection for research/scholarly activities. Further, IMNH will create a public exhibit for the project's duration, designed to educate museum visitors about the curation process as well as the VP collection itself. Together, these project features will dramatically increase access to the collection for both formal scientific research and informal education at all levels.The project is significant for both the public and the scientific community. For the public, it will preserve their own heritage and the history of the natural world. The curation exhibit will illustrate the care needed to display, maintain and preserve museum specimens. The VP collection itself is of high interest, as it encompasses the time of man's arrival in the Americas, and may shed light on current public debate of human impact on the environment. Scientifically, all items are individually irreplaceable, and may hold many keys to understanding the past. The project will not only conserve the items, but increase their access to scholars through enhanced storage and cataloguing. Scholarly research into the animals and ecologies represented by the sizable VP collection may shed important insights on dramatic environmental changes (e.g., glaciation and retreat), and may hold vital lessons concerning global warming.