The Value of Hidden Scientific Resources: Preserved Animal Specimens from Private Collections and Small Museums
The Value of Hidden Scientific Resources: Preserved Animal Specimens from Private Collections and Small Museums
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DOI：
10.1525/bio.2012.62.12.9
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发表时间：
2012-12-01
期刊：
影响因子：
10.1
通讯作者：
Godoy, Jose A.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Casas-Marce, Mireia;Revilla, Eloy;Godoy, Jose A.
自然历史收藏品已经存在了相当长的时间，它们对研究的贡献在最近几十年里得到了讨论和赞扬。然而，在科学文献中，普遍缺乏来自私人和其他小型收藏的记录。在这里，我们表明，这些收藏品代表了一个非常宝贵的研究资源，因为它们可能包括一个重要的数量与广泛的起源标本。我们用伊比利亚猞猁证明，更广泛和更少的偏见代表性的标本经常发现在这些集合允许额外的和更好的推论比那些完全从大型机构。然而，寻找小型动物收藏品非常耗时，而且不幸的是，这些收藏品往往很快消失，使其长期存在面临风险。我们建议当局，研究人员和策展人共同努力，找到这些标本并使其合法化，并将其纳入公共数据库，最终纳入更大的自然历史博物馆，以确保它们的永久存在。
Natural history collections have existed for considerable time, and their contribution to research has been discussed and praised in recent decades. In scientific literature, however, there is a general lack of records from private and other small collections. Here, we show that these collections represent a highly valuable resource for research, because they may include an important number of specimens with a broad range of origins. We used the Iberian lynx to demonstrate that the wider and less-biased representation of specimens often found in these collections allows for additional and better inferences than those that are drawn exclusively from large institutions. Locating small zoological collections, however, is very time consuming, and, unfortunately, such collections often disappear quickly, putting their long-term persistence at risk. We propose that authorities, researchers, and curators work together to locate and legalize these specimens and facilitate their inclusion in public databases and, eventually, in larger natural history museums that will ensure their existence in perpetuity.