Museum of Southwestern Biology | The University of New Mexico UNM Homepage Accessibility Statement The University of New Mexico UNM A-Z StudentInfo FastInfo myUNM Directory Amphibians & Reptiles With more than 95,000 specimens, the Division of Amphibians & Reptiles has steadily grown to become one of the largest herpetological collections in the western US. Personnel and associates conduct research in the American Southwest and throughout Latin America. The division is the primary repository of specimens for the New Mexico Dept. of Game and Fish. Arthropods Division of Arthropods maintains collections of specimens gathered worldwide. These serve as the basis for discovery of new species and systematic studies of amazing diversity. More than 350 families and 2,300 species are represented in this rapidly growing arthropod collection. Birds The Division of Birds contains more than 40,000 specimens, which represent all bird orders and 85 percent of bird families. The collection contains historic specimens of threatened, endangered, and extinct species such as the passenger pigeon. The largest holdings are from the American Southwest, Peru, and South America. Fishes The Division of Fishes has 95,000 cataloged lots of fishes - more than 4 million individual specimens. Collections of eggs, larvae, and adults aid in the study of the specialized ecology of desert fishes. The division is the primary repository for academic and agency biologists in New Mexico. Genomic Resources The Division of Genomic Resources (DGR) maintains more than 460,000 archived tissue samples and nucleic acids from over 200,000 specimens of mammals, birds, reptiles, and fish. The DGR collection is global in scope, representing taxa from over 30 countries. Our mission is to maintain a permanent reference archive of frozen tissues and DNA to aid in understanding the complexity of biological diversity and to address critical biological problems such as emerging pathogens, habitat degradation, pollution, climate change, and invasive species. Herbarium The herbarium houses 130,000 plant specimens dating back to the 1800s. The collection primarily contains vascular plants, but it also contains lichen, mosses, and fungi. The herbarium also has a library, reprint collection, and a laboratory for cytogenetics. Mammals With more than 300,000 specimens, this division is among the world's three largest mammal collections. Specimens represent more than 1,700 species from localities all over the world, with especially large holdings from Panama, Bolivia, Siberia, Mongolia, Alaska, Canada, and the American Southwest. Parasites The Division of Parasitology holds the third largest collection of parasites in North America. There are nearly 30,000 cataloged parasites, including a growing schistosome archive. This collection is unique in that most parasites are tied directly to the host specimen, allowing powerful integrated views of coevolution. Natural Heritage New Mexico Natural Heritage New Mexico (NHNM) does research on the conservation and sustainable management of New Mexico's biodiversity. We have New Mexico's only state-wide rare species and ecosystems database (NM Biotics) which helps shape conservation efforts. NHNM does biology research and education in the context of conservation and climate change. MSB Home History of the Museum Museum Policies Visiting the Museum Divisions Amphibians & Reptiles Arthropods Birds Fishes Genomic Resources Herbarium Mammals Parasites Natural Heritage New Mexico Research Biodiversity Informatics Emerging Pathogens and Zoonotics Natural Resources Management Systematics and Biodiversity Discovery International Initiatives Faculty Research Labs Publications Education Undergraduate Graduate K-12 and Community Resources for Teachers Get Involved Past News Arctos The Museum of Southwestern Biology is a research and teaching facility in the Department of Biology at the University of New Mexico. open weekdays 8am - 5pm visitors welcome by appointment information for visitors phone: (505) 277-1360 fax: (505) 277-1351 museum administrator mailing: Museum of Southwestern Biology 1 University of New Mexico MSC03-2020 Albuquerque, NM 87131 shipping: University of New Mexico 302 Yale Blvd NE CERIA 83, Room 204 Albuquerque, NM, USA 87131 Congratulations Tom Turner-Next New Regents' Professor 2025-2027 May 2023 "The College of Arts and Sciences is pleased to announce its new Regents’ Professors. Regents’ Professor is a special title bestowed on selected full professors who, in the judgment of the Dean and on the advice of a faculty selection committee, merit recognition of their accomplishments as teachers, scholars and leaders both in University affairs and in their national/international professional communities. In addition to the title “Regents’ Professor,” which is retained for the balance of an awardee’s career, this appointment also carries an annual stipend during the three-year term." Our Curator of Fishes, Professor Thomas Turner, is one of three Regents’ Professors appointed for Annual Years 2025-2027! Read the full article here For a general background on our museum, please watch our introduction video here Meanwhile Many exciting publications by our personnel or based on our collections are coming out. Check out the latest ones here: Latest MSB Division of Mammals Publications Latest MSB Division of Birds Publications Latest MSB Division of Amphibians & Reptiles Publications Latest MSB Division of Fishes Publications MSB Studio Night RSVP Past News © The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, (505) 277-0111 New Mexico's Flagship University Legal Contact UNM