It is the largest such university-held collection in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Kentucky. As zoology professors and active researchers, Brandon and Burr had individually managed specimens in their respective specialties. Those are now pooled. The combined collection totals 300,000 specimens and represents 2,500 species of fishes, amphibians and reptiles. Burr compares it to as a 3-D library of fishes and herps.
Undergrads use the collection to learn about ichthyology, herpetology and vertebrate zoology.
Graduate students turn to it for information about evolution, species identification and classification, molecular structure and ecology. State and regulatory agencies deposit some of their own specimens here. And they rely on the facility to provide data on threatened and endangered species that influence land-use plans. The collection's specimens also are loaned to scientists around the globe. Eventually, a searchable list of all holdings will be posted on a new web site of the Internet, providing easier access to teachers, natural resource managers and other scientists, said Brandon.