Fungus Removal and Rehousing of the Ichthyology and Herpetology Skeletal Collections at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

在克莉丝汀·萨克尔博士的指导下，洛杉矶县自然历史博物馆获得了一笔赠款，用于部分支持一个项目，以清洁和重新安置鱼类学和爬虫学的骨骼收藏品，以及打击鱼类学骨骼收藏品中的曲霉菌感染。 这些部分总共保存了大约520万个标本（500万种鱼类和20万种两栖动物和爬行动物），包括8,000个干燥的、有关节或无关节的骨骼标本。这些标本包括海洋和淡水鱼类，包括板鳃类骨骼和颌骨，以及蛇，蜥蜴和青蛙。 它们是生物学、生物力学、进化和考古学研究的资源。这些重要的收藏品一直存放在不适合适当存放的纸箱中，应该更换。 此外，鱼类学中的骨骼收藏品最近被真菌感染。在本项目中，受感染的骨骼标本将由真菌修复公司进行清洁，并重新安置在塑料盒以及塑料袋和/或硅胶包中，以降低湿度。 将监测不同储存处理的标本，以确定单个处理标本中是否发生任何真菌再生长。 未被感染的骨架将被手动清理，重新装箱，并在必要时进行编目。 收集区域也将被清洁，并降低湿度，以防止真菌复发。 在自然历史收藏中，治疗这种规模的真菌感染是罕见的，并且在骨骼上对抗感染的特定需求特别不寻常。 到目前为止，我们已经记录了我们应对措施的所有步骤，包括真菌的检测和鉴定，处理和储存方法的试点研究，以及收集处理和升级的计划。我们将继续记录我们在处理和储存方法方面的进展，作为案例研究。由于与接触曲霉菌有关的健康危害，自发现该真菌以来，鱼类学和爬虫学方面的图尔斯旅游和教育活动已暂停。 这个项目将使我们能够重新向学生，研究人员和公众开放收藏。 该项目将在两个重要的骨骼收藏中阻止潜在的破坏性真菌感染，并为这些收藏提供重新安置和编目，以便它们可以提供给研究界以及自然历史博物馆的教育和展览计划。 这些骨骼藏品对于以收藏为基础的研究具有价值，如进化、系统学、分类学、生物力学、年龄和生长以及考古学和历史等相关领域的研究。

A grant has been awarded to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County under the direction of Dr. Christine Thacker for partial support of a project to clean and rehouse the skeletal collections of Ichthyology and Herpetology, as well as combat an Aspergillus fungus infestation in the Ichthyology skeletal collections. Together these sections maintain an estimated 5,200,000 specimens (5 million fishes and 200,000 amphibians and reptiles), including 8,000 dried, articulated or disarticulated skeletal preparations. These specimens include both marine and freshwater fishes, including elasmobranch skeletons and jaws, as well as snakes, lizards and frogs. They serve as a resource for biological, biomechanical, evolutionary and archaeological studies. These important collections have been stored in cardboard boxes that are not suitable for proper storage, should be replaced. Additionally, the skeleton collections in Ichthyology have recently become infested with Apergillus fungus. For this project, the infested skeletal collections will be cleaned by a fungus remediation firm, and rehoused in plastic boxes, as well as plastic bags and/or silica gel packs to reduce humidity. The specimens in different storage treatments will be monitored to determine if any fungus regrowth occurs in individual treated specimens. Uninfested skeletons will be manually cleaned, reboxed, and catalogued if necessary. Collection areas will also be cleaned, and humidity lowered to prevent recurrence of the fungus. Treatment of a fungal infection of this magnitude in a natural history collection is rare, and the specific needs for combat of an infection on skeletons are particularly unusual. We have documented all steps in our response thus far, including detection and identification of the fungus, pilot studies of treatment and storage methods, and plans for collection treatments and upgrades. We will continue to document our progress in treatment and storage methods for preparation as a case study. Due to the health hazards associated with exposure to Aspergillus fungus, tours and educational activities in Ichthyology and Herpetology have been suspended since the fungus was identified. This project will enable us to reopen the collections to students, researchers, and the public. This project will arrest a potentially devastating fungal infection in two significant skeletal collections and provide for rehousing and cataloguing those collections so that they may be made available to the research community as well as for the educational and exhibit programs at the Natural History Museum. These skeletal holdings are of value for collection-based research such as studies of evolution, systematics, taxonomy, biomechanics, age and growth, as well as in related fields such as archaeology and history.