Databasing of the Bird & Mammal Collections at Illinois State University

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。该项目将为伊利诺伊州立大学约翰·韦斯利·鲍威尔-戴尔·比肯霍尔兹自然历史馆藏的7600个鸟类和哺乳动物标本建立第一个计算机数据库。这包括科学研究皮肤，骨骼，标本支架，冷冻组织和胃内容物。大多数标本来自1867年至今的伊利诺伊州；其余的来自其他州和国家。将在生物科学学院网站（www.bio.illinoisstate.edu）上建立一个在线数据访问的集合网站。这个为期一年的项目创造了三个职位：技术助理、研究生策展助理和本科生策展助理。其主要目标是通过互联网方便地访问这些收藏，以供地方、国家和国际的研究和教学活动使用。该数据库还将向在线全球数据门户网站（包括鸟类学信息系统和哺乳动物网络信息系统）提供有关鸟类和哺乳动物多样性、生态学和分布的宝贵生物和地理数据。该项目将成为小型但重要的大学收藏的模型，将它们的标本记录与世界各地主要博物馆的标本记录相结合。这将极大地扩大基于标本的研究和教学的机会，包括非政府组织和政府组织的保护活动。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).This project will develop the first computerized database of the 7,600 specimens of birds and mammals in the John Wesley Powell-Dale Birkenholz Natural History Collections at Illinois State University. This includes scientific study skins, skeletons, taxidermy mounts, frozen tissues, and stomach contents. Most specimens are from Illinois dating from 1867 to the present; the rest are from other states and countries. A collections website for online data access will be developed on the School of Biological Sciences website (www.bio.illinoisstate.edu). The one-year project creates three jobs: Technical Associate, Graduate Student Curatorial Assistant, and Undergraduate Student Curatorial Assistant.The principal goal is to make these collections easily accessible via the Internet for local, national, and international research and teaching activities. The collections database also will contribute valuable biological and geographic data on the diversity, ecology, and distribution of birds and mammals to online global data portals, including the Ornithology Information System and the Mammal Network Information System. The project will serve as a model for small but significant university collections to integrate their specimen records with those of major museum collections worldwide. This will greatly expand the opportunities for specimen-based research and teaching, including conservation activities by nongovernmental and governmental organizations.