CSBR: Natural History Collections: Digital Imaging of Molluscan Type Specimens at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia

该项目将为费城自然科学院（ANSP）收集的大约12000个软体动物标本制作数字图像，该科学院是德雷克塞尔大学的一部分。模式标本是科学家命名新物种时使用的原始标本，是系统生物学中物种识别和比较研究的参考标准。ANSP的软体动物收藏是北美最古老的，可以追溯到19世纪初，拥有600多名科学家命名的模式标本。项目图像将在网上提供，并提供给整合生物多样性信息的网站。软体动物是所有主要动物群体中灭绝率最高的，占有记录历史上物种灭绝的40%以上，淡水和陆生软体动物受到的影响最大。只有3%的软体动物物种得到了保护状况评估，因此许多物种的灭绝可能被忽视了。项目图像的在线可用性将帮助科学家识别软体动物物种并评估其保护状况，这是全世界迫切需要的。该项目将对德雷塞尔大学的本科生进行软体动物系统学、分类学和策展技术方面的培训，并训练他们使用电子数据库和成像设备。项目网站：http://clade.ansp.org/malacology/collections/index.html

This project will produce digital images of about 12,000 type specimens in the mollusk collection at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (ANSP), which is part of Drexel University. Type specimens are the original specimens that scientists used when naming a new species, so they are the standards of reference for identifying species and doing comparative research in systematic biology. The mollusk collection at ANSP is the oldest in North America, dating from the early 1800s, and holds type specimens named by more than 600 scientists. Project images will be served online and made available to websites that consolidate information about biodiversity.Mollusks have the highest extinction rate of any major group of animals, accounting for more than 40% of species extinctions in recorded history, with freshwater and terrestrial mollusks being most strongly impacted. Only 3% of mollusk species have had their conservation status assessed, so many extinctions have likely been overlooked. The availability of project images online will help scientists identify mollusk species and assess their conservation status, which is urgently needed throughout the world. The project will train undergraduates from Drexel University in molluscan systematics, taxonomy, and curatorial techniques and in working with electronic databases and imaging equipment. Project website: http://clade.ansp.org/malacology/collections/index.html