Research in the Division of Invertebrate Zoology leverages our two most important resources: our collections and our people.
Our holdings enable research by our scientists and by the scientists around the world. We aim to make the diversity and depth of our holdings visible through our collections databases and through publications and resources that contextualize our holdings within the larger research community. Recent projects using our collections include a study of the diversity of devil crayfish, a global trait database for freshwater mussels, and a global database of the distribution of crayfish and their pathogens.
The expertise held by the scientists working in the Division of Invertebrate Zoology is a resource that adds value to other museums through the study of their collections and through the creation of resources in support of collections-based research.
Recent projects include a study of the diversity of sea anemones in Mo'orea, the evolution of land snails in the Galápagos, an analysis of speciation in shrimp following the closure of the Isthmus of Panama, a study of venom evolution in sea anemones, and the descriptions of many new species of crayfish, snails, and sea anemones.
Resources and community efforts that benefit from the expertise of our researchers include the World Register of Marine Species, iNaturalist, and papers on data standards in collection-based research, broadening participation in STEM, and in recognizing the effort and impact of collections-based science.