West side of the Sandia Mountains, New Mexico (Andrew B. Johnson)

Mission

The Museum of Southwestern Biology Division of Birds seeks to maximize its potential and function as a teaching and research resource for all interested researchers. The Division of Birds serves as a repository for materials documenting the distribution of and research on birds of New Mexico and the Southwest, and serves as a resource for these materials for the ornithological community.

About the Collection

The Museum of Southwestern Biology's Division of Birds maintains an extensive research collection of western North American birds. The collecting efforts of William J. Koster formed the basis of the original collection. Growth in the division increased in the 1960s when graduate student David M. Niles cared for the collections. Since the arrival in 1989 of Robert W. Dickerman, the collection's holdings have increased over fourfold, and today consists of more than 24,000 specimens. Personnel associated with the Division conduct research involving evolutionary and behavioral adaptations of birds throughout the Southwest and the world.

Most of the Division's holdings are from the American Southwest. However, the Division also has representatives of a large percentage of the families of the birds of the world. It also contains many specimens of threatened, endangered and extinct species of North America. The Division also maintains a collection of skeletons, a small egg collection, and sample specimens used for teaching.

The Division is the repository for birds collected by personnel of the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish. Birds salvaged by New Mexico rehabilitators are also added to the collection. Important donated collections include the voucher specimens of Amadeo M. Rea, used in his book titled "Once a River." Other donations include the raptors and game birds of J.M. Campbell and a portion of the J. Stokley Ligon collections, and a collection of birds of the world contributed by Dale A. Zimmerman.

The Division of Birds offers taxonomic services and research materials for students and researchers, and information and assistance for teaching and public service. Skin, skeleton and tissue collections are fully computerized, and parts of this database will be available on the internet.

Geographic Concentration (%)

Size and Taxonomic Composition

Orders	%
Passeriformes	66.7
Charadriiformes	5.8
Anseriformes	5.1
Falconiiformes	5.1
Piciformes	3.8
Total	86.5