SwissCollNet – Digitization of fossil reference objects in natural history collections
Project
ID: 000704363
Public
Museum’s collections host the primary source of taxonomic knowledge, the holotypes that act as reference objects for the definition of species. Since they have to be consulted for comparative studies and description of new organisms, they are deposited in our public institutions where full access is granted. Swiss collection-bearing institutions often have more than 150 years of existence with ongoing research, gather millions of fossil specimens together, and are thus prime repositories for holotypes, and relevant reference specimens. Hundreds of scientists from all over the world visit Swiss institutions because of this exceptionally dense and, over centuries, constant collection policy. With an estimate of +10’500 holotypes and reference specimens of fossil vertebrate, invertebrate or single-celled species, Swiss institutions can contribute to our knowledge of past and present diversity through the availability of this comparative resource. Most of these specimens, despite being of high importance to the scientific community, are not properly digitized. The vast majority has not been imaged, or is even not yet digitally processed in a proper collection management system. Imaging and digitizing these specimens appear as a primary task to make them fully available to the community. Our project offers to photograph, surface-scan, CT-scan them, and mobilize their information in the Swiss Virtual Natural History Collection following international databasing standards.