In May 2002, the Arachnid and Myriapod Collections were
transferred from offices in the former Department of
Entomology into a new facility within the AMNH, the Starr
Natural Sciences building (NSB). In the NSB, specimens
are stored in state-of-the-art cabinetry and a
climate-controlled environment to ensure their longevity.
In 2003, a survey of the state of preservation of the Arachnid and Myriapod Collections was undertaken, in collaboration with the Office of the Dean of Science for Collections (Lisa Kronthal), by Christina Bisulca, a graduate intern of natural science conservation. The results of the study were written up as a report motivating the need new glassware and closures to rehouse the collection. The report was submitted to the Associate Dean of Science for Collections, Curator Darrel Frost, who approved the funds from a NASA grant, and the glassware and closures were subsequently purchased.
A complete overhaul of the original storage containers, undertaken by eight volunteers supervised by Randy Mercurio, began in 2004. Each volunteer was assigned one or more orders of arachnids and myriapods, and commenced rebottling the material in the collections using the new glassware and closures. All old, unstandardized bottles and vials, many with bake-lite closures or rubber stoppers, were replaced by new glass jars of standardized volumes with polyethylene closures and polypropylene-foam liners. Significant progress has been made, with some minor orders (e.g. Amblypygi, Solifugae and Uropygi) completely rebottled and others (e.g. Scorpiones) nearing completion.
Replacing the glassware and closures is only the first step in a long-term plan to upgrade these collections. After the rebottling process is completed, Prendini and Huff intend to see the entire collection databased and catalogued (probably using barcodes) by volunteers, who will also print out new labels for every specimen or specimen-lot, in ethanol-resistant ink on durable paper, using a new dot-matrix printer acquired for the purpose.
 |
 |
In 2003, a survey of the state of preservation of the Arachnid and Myriapod Collections was undertaken, in collaboration with the Office of the Dean of Science for Collections (Lisa Kronthal), by Christina Bisulca, a graduate intern of natural science conservation. The results of the study were written up as a report motivating the need new glassware and closures to rehouse the collection. The report was submitted to the Associate Dean of Science for Collections, Curator Darrel Frost, who approved the funds from a NASA grant, and the glassware and closures were subsequently purchased.
A complete overhaul of the original storage containers, undertaken by eight volunteers supervised by Randy Mercurio, began in 2004. Each volunteer was assigned one or more orders of arachnids and myriapods, and commenced rebottling the material in the collections using the new glassware and closures. All old, unstandardized bottles and vials, many with bake-lite closures or rubber stoppers, were replaced by new glass jars of standardized volumes with polyethylene closures and polypropylene-foam liners. Significant progress has been made, with some minor orders (e.g. Amblypygi, Solifugae and Uropygi) completely rebottled and others (e.g. Scorpiones) nearing completion.
Replacing the glassware and closures is only the first step in a long-term plan to upgrade these collections. After the rebottling process is completed, Prendini and Huff intend to see the entire collection databased and catalogued (probably using barcodes) by volunteers, who will also print out new labels for every specimen or specimen-lot, in ethanol-resistant ink on durable paper, using a new dot-matrix printer acquired for the purpose.