I shared Bill's inquiry with a colleague of mine who is not on the list.  She emailed Bill directly, and I asked her if I could post her response to the entire list since I think it might be helpful to other listers.  Here is her response:

Bill:  Your message was forwarded to me by my colleague who receives Museum-L.  The topic of collecting specimens should be part of the museum's collections policy.  If your museum is involved in research, such as ours, then collecting specimens is a valid and necessary activity.  Most biological collecting is regulated through state, federal and international permits.  In the example of birds, the US Fish and Wildlife Service requires anyone who holds migratory birds (virtually all US bird species) to hold a valid Migratory Bird Salvage Permit.  Our institution has such a permit so that individuals, local nature centers and other organizations can legally collect window kill or other naturally killed specimens which they deposit with Cincinnati Museum Center.  The Museum then can process the specimens for scientific purposes or, if we receive an unusual specimen, mount for potential display. 

Some professional societies, such as herpetologists have enacted policies that allow scientists to photo document a new distribution of a species.  This means that individuals specimens do not need to be collected (killed) in order to create a scientifically valid (and recognized) distribution record.  

 For further discussion on this topic you might contact SPNHC -- the Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections at their website www.spnhc.org.  You can also join their list serve, NH-COLL -- information is available on the website.  Jane

Jane MacKnight
Registrar
Cincinnati Museum Center
T. 513/287-7092
F. 513/455-7169




>               Amy C. Scrivner
>               Development Manager of Government Funding
>               Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal
>               1301 Western Avenue 
>               Cincinnati, OH 45203
>               (513) 287-7042
>               (513) 287-7036 fax
>               [log in to unmask]
> 
>               Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal is a community treasure, hosting 1.4 million visitors, 145,000 school children, and over 700 community events annually. Originally built in 1933 as the Union Terminal train station, the building is a National Historic Landmark and was renovated and reopened as Cincinnati Museum Center in 1990. For more information, call (513) 287-7000 or 1-800-733-2077 or visit our website at www.cincymuseum.org 
> 
> 

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