Ornithology, Bonn

Collection

The majority of the ornithological collection consists of dry preserved specimens. It currently comprises around 76,000 bellows, 9,000 mounted birds, 8,000 skeletons, 14,000 feather bows and Germany's largest egg collection with around 85,000 eggs. A further 1,700 bird nests and several hundred specimens in alcohol are also part of the collection. Referenced partial samples of organ or tissue material are stored in the museum's biobank. The type specimens in the ornithological collection represent 322 scientific bird names. The geographical focus of the collection is on the Palaearctic, the Afrotropics and the Neotropics. Taxonomically, finches (Fringillidae), weavers (Ploceidae) and hummingbirds (Trochilidae) are very well represented. Of considerable scientific importance are local series (bellows, feathers, eggs), which represent informative cross-sections of the variation in characteristics of bird populations at a particular place at a particular time. With the help of modern methods of analysis, these series enable comparative studies with present-day populations at the same location. The ongoing digitisation of the collection also facilitates the physical and digital retrieval of specimens and their accompanying documentation.