UCSB Natural History Collections
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Importance of Collections
Natural history collections and collection-based research are vital to discovering, understanding, and documenting biodiversity and to informing public policy on such issues as invasive species, climate change, evolution, and emerging public health threats. Natural history collections represent the irreplaceable documentation of life on Earth.
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History and Introduction to UCSB Natural History Collections
The Cheadle Center houses the UCSB Natrual History Collections including Herpetology, other Vertebrates, Vascular Plants, Lichens, Algae, Invertebrate Zoology and several other small botanical and zoological collections. Several other collections are found on the University of Santa Barbara Campus and are supported by the Cheadle Center. The paleontology collection is housed within the Geology Department. The Ichthyology collection is housed near the Marine Sciences Institute.
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Access to Collections
UCSB collections at the Cheadle Center are available for use by university faculty, researchers, staff, and students as well as community members, including biological consultants, governmental agencies, and K-12 educators and their students. Please contact Greg Wahlert, our Biodiversity Curator for more information.
You are welcome to freely use all data and images through our online specimen data portals, but please cite all data used from our collections in your publication references. Citing our collections helps us find publications that have used our collections in research.