What the Fish? Episode 6: Tales from the Field
2.5 million specimens don't collect themselves!
The Field Museum's Division of Fishes houses approximately 2.5 million specimens of fish, including whole specimens in alcohol, skeletal specimens, tissue samples, and cleared and stained material. That is a lot of fishes! But the fishes did not just arrive overnight; scientists and researchers have been adding to the collection at The Field Museum since 1894.
Museum collections serve as records of the natural world, as well as critical resources for scientists wanting to study the biodiversity of the planet. The fishes collection has grown through continued fieldwork by ichthyologists that use a vast array of tools and strategies for sampling living and extinct fishes from around the world. Tune into our podcast this week with a special paleoichthyological guest, Sarah Gibson of the University of Kansas. Listen to us as we discuss the many different ways we collect fishes in the field.