Inside NATUR AL HIS TORY RESE ARCH Virginia Museum of
1 Touchstones of Life
4 For the Birds
7 Clues to Our Past
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N umber 3 • 2008 TWO DOLLARS
From the Director of Research and Collections All over the world, millions of people enjoy visiting museums which display and explain the diversity and beauty of the natural world. But of that number, only a tiny fraction realize that the exhibits have been made possible largely by research conducted “behind the scenes” in parts of the buildings devoted to the care and use of extensive collections of animal, plant, and mineral specimens. Whether a museum is supported by public or private funding, a major part of its mission is likely to combine the complementary roles of research, by which knowledge is increased, and education, by which knowledge is dispersed or made accessible. VMNH is no exception to this generality. As explained by Dr. Nancy Moncrief in the lead article of this issue, most research conducted in natural history museums is descriptive in the sense of distinguishing natural objects, defining their characteristics and relationships, and providing the framework for synthesizing information about them. Such knowledge provides the foundation upon which other kinds of research are based, just as all forms of communication ultimately depend on alphabets. Descriptive work is also comparative, by which the nature and extent of natural variability is defined both within and between species, and the ability to make such distinctions requires not just a single specimen, but enough to show the range of diversity. Thus, the accumulation of reference collections becomes essential. In a very real sense, museum collections are similar to libraries – individual specimens, like books, are: classified by subject matter (relationships), stored permanently in a way that allows access at need, and always available for future reference. Human knowledge of the world and its phenomena not only increases exponentially, but existing perceptions also constantly change as research provides new insights and new interpretations of existing information. Each museum specimen embodies not only what is presently known, but is a package of stored data awaiting new techniques and new approaches by which still more useful knowledge can be obtained. Far from simply being locked away from public view, museum collections are accessible not just to professional scientists but to any member of society having a demonstrated interest in museum research or personal expertise in some branch of knowledge. Collections are a kind of national trust, maintained by national and local governments worldwide, and their importance as windows into the all-encompassing world about us deserves understanding and appreciation by citizenry at large.
Dr. Richard Hoffman
From the Executive Director This is our third issue of Inside VMNH Research and I believe that it emphasizes the important roles that women play in science at the Virginia Museum of Natural History, as all of the articles in this issue are written by women scientists on the VMNH staff. The Association for Women in Science (AWIS) envisions that there will be a day when women will participate fully in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics as manifested through equal opportunity, pay equity, and recognition commensurate with their accomplishments. At VMNH, that day is here. Our Research and Collections department now totals 14 staff including nine women: Dr. Nancy Moncrief, curator of mammalogy; Dr. Elizabeth Moore, curator of archaeology; Dr. Judith Winston, curator of marine biology; Julie Hoskin, collections manager; Jill Harris, registrar; Mary Catherine Santoro, librarian; Haley Cartmell, research assistant; Susan Kirby, lab assistant and our newest staff member, Mary Carman, SEM lab technician. Women play an important role in virtually all aspects of the Virginia Museum of Natural History but I am especially proud of the women scientists on our staff. It is my belief that our women scientists serve as role models to the thousands of young girls who visit our museum and who one day, may be the scientists of tomorrow.
Timothy J. Gette
Inside
Virginia Museum of
NATUR AL HIS TORY RESE ARCH N umber 3 • 2008 Published by the Virginia Museum of Natural History, 21 Starling Avenue, Martinsville, VA 24112, for VMNH members, scholars, educators, libraries, journalists and supporters. For membership information, call (276) 634-4141 or visit www.vmnh.net. Production Staff Ryan L. Barber, Editor Melody Cartwright, Art Director Jessica Davenport, Managing Editor Executive Staff Timothy J. Gette, Executive Director Gloria W. Niblett, Director of Administration and Services Dr. Richard L. Hoffman, Director of Research and Collections Dr. Dennis A. Casey, Director of Education and Public Programs Ryan L. Barber, Director of Marketing and External Affairs Debra J. Lewis, Director of Development Research and Collections Board Committee Dr. J. James Murray, Jr., Chair Dr. Oliver S. Flint, Jr., Vice Chair Briggs W. Andrews Dr. Bruce D. Smith Lisa L. Wu Scientific Advisory Board Dr. William Shear, Chair Dr. John Holsinger Dr. Michael Kosztarab Dr. Duncan Porter Dr. Janet Reid Dr. Mary Schweitzer Research and Collections Staff Dr. Richard L. Hoffman, Director of Research and Collections, Curator of Recent Invertebrates Dr. James S. Beard, Assistant Director of Research and Collections for Earth Sciences, Curator of Earth Sciences Dr. Nancy D. Moncrief, Assistant Director of Research and Collections for Life Sciences, Curator of Mammalogy Dr. Alton C. Dooley, Jr., Assistant Curator of Paleontology Dr. Elizabeth A. Moore, Curator of Archaeology Dr. Lauck W. Ward, Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology Dr. Judith E. Winston, Curator of Marine Biology Julie Hoskin, Collections Manager Jill K. Harris, Registrar Mary Catherine Santoro, Librarian Mary Carman, SEM Lab Technician Haley E. Cartmell, Research Assistant, Biology Susan C. Kirby, Lab Assistant, Earth Sciences Jason Lunze, Collections Technician
About the cover: Domesticated dog mandible from the zooarchaeology comparative collection. This modern specimen, as well as the others in the collection, are used to help identify bones and bone fragments found at archaeological sites. Photo by Jessica Davenport.
The Virginia Museum of Natural History is accredited by the American Association of Museums, and is a member of the Association of Science-Technology Centers, Heritage Preservation, Southeastern Museums Conference, NSC Alliance, Virginia Association of Museums, and Museum Store Association. VMNH is an agency of the Secretary of Natural Resources for the Commonwealth of Virginia. The VMNH Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization.
Collections
Touchstones of Life By Dr. Nancy D. Moncrief, VMNH Curator of Mammalogy
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harles Elton, the founding editor of the Journal of Animal Ecology, once remarked, “there is little use in making observations about an animal if you don’t know its name.”1 The primary function of biology and paleontology collections is to document past and present organisms in their natural environments. The specimens in these collections are the physical basis for naming and identifying plants, animals, and other living things. Humans have identified and named plants, animals, and other organisms for thousands of years. Knowing which plants do (and do not) ease pain was and is valuable information. In fact, the organized scientific study of nature in Britain traces its roots to naturalist societies that met to collect and identify plants with medicinal properties.2 Today, naming organisms is part of the science of taxonomy. Through a formal procedure, often called “describing a new species,” a unique two-part name (usually in Latin) is given to a specimen in a natural history collection. The description is typically published in a technical journal as a narrative physical description of the specimen accompanied by photographs and drawings. The particular specimen described in the publication is then the physical standard (type specimen) for that unique name. Other, sufficiently similar specimens are then labeled with the same name, and that name is subsequently used to refer to all like specimens.
Above: VMNH collections are resources for research by scientists in Virginia, other states, and the entire world. This publication is the formal description of a new kind of stonefly. The type specimen pictured here, Acroneuria yuchi, is housed in VMNH’s collections of recent invertebrates.
Collections provide information about which organisms occurred where and when. In this way, collections are used to determine the geographic distributions and abundance of organisms. Maps in field guides and other scientific literature are ultimately based on physical evidence: specimens in natural history collections.
“The primary function of biology and paleontology collections is to document past and present organisms in their natural environments.”
(continued)
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Q&A
What is a specimen?
T Researchers at the University of Maryland drilled a small hole in this fossil bone to obtain material for a chemical analysis of this muskox’s diet.4
Specimens in natural history collections also provide the material that is essential for studies of evolutionary and ecological relationships. Collections of fossils allow the direct study of ancestral organisms. They also allow scientists to compile transitional series for understanding evolutionary histories. Ecological relationships of extinct species can be investigated using fossil assemblages. Recent technological advances also allow scientists to determine what animals ate using chemical analysis of fossils. The muskox fossil shown above also illustrates another facet of the use of natural history collections. Often, specimens are collected for one purpose – to answer questions like “what kinds of animals lived in Saltville, Virginia 14,000 years ago?” If they are properly housed and maintained, new technologies can be used to re-analyze the same specimens and answer an entirely different question, in this case “what did they eat?” In a similar way, specimens that were collected before the structure of DNA was discovered can now be used to examine historical changes in gene frequencies, which are among the most important data in evolutionary biology.3 Natural history collections provide the material necessary for comparative studies of organisms across space and time. Many areas of applied research – disease vectors, environmental contaminants, biological invasions, climate change – rely entirely, or in large part, on physical evidence and information that can only be provided by these collections. 1 Marston Bates. The Nature of Natural History. (New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1905) 9. 2 David Elliston Allen. The Naturalist in Britain: A Social History. (New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1994) 8. 3 Jared M. Diamond. “Old dead rats are valuable,” Nature. 347 (1990): 334-335. 4 Christine A. M. France, Paula M. Zelanko, Alan J. Kaufman, and Thomas R. Holtz. “Carbon and nitrogen isotopic analysis of Pleistocene mammals from the Saltville Quarry (Virginia, USA): Implications for trophic relationships,” Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 249 (2007): 271- 282.
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he objects held by natural history museums are called specimens. A biological or paleontological specimen is an individual organism, part of an organism, or a naturally-occurring material related to an organism. For example, birds are traditionally preserved as skins with the feathers still attached. The bird skin is usually positioned on its back with the wings tucked and the legs in line with the body. This type of preservation (as opposed to a life-like pose with the wings spread) is space efficient, allowing more bird skins to be stored in a given amount of space. Nests, eggs, and fossil trackways are examples of naturally-occurring materials that are not organisms, but they are natural history specimens. A specimen may exist in its original state, in an altered form, or some combination of the two. For example, a fossil may be left in its rock matrix, or if time, money, and techniques permit, it may be removed from the matrix. A specimen may consist of one piece or many related pieces. For example, an individual mammal is typically preserved as a skin with hair attached and a skeleton. The skin, together with all the individual bones and the skull, are considered to be a single specimen because they all represent the same individual animal. Bones and teeth are the connection between living mammals and extinct forms represented only by fossil material.
Why are most specimens never seen by the general public?
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pecimens in natural history collections are stored in special conditions to reduce damage caused by fluctuations and extremes in temperature and humidity. Most specimens are susceptible to deterioration due to exposure to light. Insects and rodents can also cause irreparable physical damage to specimens such as mammal and bird skins. Proper storage is extremely important, but so is proper documentation. A common saying in museum collections is “A label without a specimen is more useful than a specimen without a label.” Labels typically include information about where, when, and how a specimen was obtained. All this information is necessary to place that specimen into the correct geographic, ecological, and evolutionary context. With a label, the specimen is a wealth of information; without a label, the same specimen is of little or no value to science, although it may be useful for exhibits or educational programming. Specimens that are displayed in exhibits or used in education programs are subjected to conditions (excessive light and handling) that damage and destroy them over time. Because of the amounts of time, money, and effort required to collect, preserve, and document a specimen, most museums do not use properly documented specimens in their exhibits and programming. For this reason, the vast majority of specimens in natural history collections are never put on public display.
Collections storage area for specimens preserved in alcohol.
Photos pages 1–3 by Melody Cartwright.
Why do you have so many specimens?
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t is difficult, if not impossible, to predict which specimens will be used in the future by whom and for what purpose. Keith Thomson observes, “It is an old saying in business that half of all money spent on advertising is wasted, but nobody can tell which half. Similarly in museums, at any one time it may be urgent or fashionable to study a particular group of organisms or a particular phenomenon. The rest of the collections are unused. But 25 years in the future, a different subset of the collections will be in constant use. Who would have thought it important in 1950 to save broken bits of peregrine falcon eggshell collected over the last century? Or that, after Rachel Carson’s book ‘Silent Spring,’ such fragments would be essential for documenting the lethal effect of DDT on eggshell thickness worldwide?”1 Holdings of an institution’s natural history collections typically reflect the research interests of the scientists who have worked there. For example, VMNH has unusually large collections of tree squirrels and millipeds because of Dr. Moncrief ’s and Dr. Hoffman’s efforts. (continued on back cover)
1 Keith S. Thomson. “Natural History Museum Collections in the 21st Century,” ActionBioscience.org. April 2005 <http://www.actionbioscience.org/evolution/thomson.html>.
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Mammalogy
For the Birds By Dr. Nancy D. Moncrief, VMNH Curator of Mammalogy
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n the late 1990s, my good friend, Dr. Quality, Ray and I began a long-term study Raymond Dueser, and I learned from of raccoon biology on these islands. First, another friend, Barry Truitt, who works we surveyed most of the islands to docufor The Nature Conservancy, that populament which islands have raccoons on them. tions of nesting birds were declining on This involved systematically looking for Virginia’s barrier islands. These islands are tracks during different seasons of the year. among the most important nesting areas for We also trapped animals, fitted them with shorebirds and colonial waterbirds because radio-collars to monitor their movements, they comprise the and clipped off a only undeveloped small piece of ear for barrier system on genetic analysis. “Because raccoons are the eastern seaboard. From our more widespread and These islands serve systematic track suras the birds’ last safe veys, we were able to abundant than haven. If they can’t identify islands that nest and successfully always have raccoons foxes ... we decided rear young here, they living on them. to focus our time are in serious trouble Several islands never, from a biological or almost never, had and energy on conservation raccoons during perspective. our study. From the the raccoons.” Those who know radiotelemetry studme as curator of ies, we learned that mammalogy may be wondering why I’m raccoons can travel almost two kilometers investigating declining populations of birds. (about 1.2 miles) in a single day Well, it turns out that raccoons and red on an island. Many of the foxes are one of the main reasons for those islands are much closer declines. Both of these predators feed on a together than that, variety of plant and animal material, and and the chanthey especially like to eat bird eggs. Barry nels separating asked us to help evaluate the situation and some of the make recommendations that would result islands are in reduced predation on eggs. Because racfairly narcoons are more widespread and abundant row and/or than foxes, and thus have the potential to shallow. affect the populations of birds on more We knew islands, we decided to focus our time and that the energy on the raccoons. raccoons So, with support from the Virginia could move Coastal Zone Management Program, which to and among is administered by the Commonwealth of the islands, but Virginia’s Department of Environmental we didn’t know
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how often they did so. This was a critical question to answer. If a large number of animals are constantly moving to and from a particular island, there could be a constant stream of egg predators arriving just before the bird-nesting season each spring. Over a seven-year period of trapping, marking, and releasing several hundred
animals, and radiotelemetry of several dozen, we directly observed only four instances of raccoons moving between islands, or between the mainland and the islands. Because direct observation of interisland movements is difficult, we turned to an indirect measure of movement: genetic variation within and among populations.
Populations that frequently exchange individuals are genetically very similar to each other. The number of genetic differences between populations is a measure of how often individuals move between those populations. For the raccoon data, if the animals frequently moved between islands, we would expect to see very few genetic differences between the animals on these islands. When Ray and I decided to use genetic analyses to look at our island raccoons, I asked a colleague, Dr. Ronald Van Den Bussche of Oklahoma State University, to work with us. Ron, an internationally renowned geneticist, has a DNA sequencer in his lab, and one of his Master’s students was focusing on raccoon genetics as his thesis
project. With Ron’s help, we have sequenced and analyzed data for almost two hundred raccoons. We documented genetic differences among animals from nearby islands and concluded that movement among the islands is not frequent. Because there are only a few raccoons on some islands, we were able to consider a behavioral technique called conditioned taste aversion to manage those animals. This technique “teaches” nest predators, such as raccoons, to avoid the eggs of nesting shorebirds and colonial waterbirds. If it works as we hope, aversive conditioning holds the promise of being an effective low-cost method to reduce nest predation by those few raccoons. (continued)
Above: The soft sand of the islands is an excellent medium for capturing data about an island’s inhabitants. We used systematic surveys of mammal tracks to document the occurrence of several species. These are raccoon tracks; the larger tracks on the right of the photo are the animal’s hind feet. Top left: This animal is easily identified by the eartag colors and numbers. It is also wearing a radiotransmitting collar. Opposite page: This untagged animal is handling a chicken egg during a test of methods for deploying the automatic cameras. Photos by Joel D. Martin.
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This anesthetized animal has been tagged with a unique eartag, marked with black hair dye, and fitted with a radio collar so that it can be identified and its movements can be monitored. Photo by Robert Alonso.
We are still conducting experiments to test our methods. Basically, before the onset of the nesting season, we scatter surrogate eggs that are injected with an aversive-conditioning compound. The aversive compound is undetectable to the predator, and the compound produces a severe, short-term, non-lethal illness in the predator soon after it eats the treated eggs. If the technique works correctly, predators will develop an aversion to treated eggs, will generalize this aversion to untreated eggs, and will stop depredating all eggs. That is, by eating an egg and getting really sick, the raccoon will “learn” that all eggs are not good to eat and will avoid the eggs of the birds we’re trying to help. Ray and his Master’s student, Joel Martin, have conducted several experiments using Japanese quail eggs, which are very similar in size and appearance to the eggs of many shorebirds and colonial waterbirds, as surrogates. These experiments included placing artificial nests with treated eggs at various locations on one of the islands. Joel used camera traps to document which island inhabitants visited which nests. Because he had trapped and marked all the raccoons on the island, he was able to identify, in photographs, the individual raccoons that visited each nest. We have not yet conducted a field trial of our conditioned taste aversion methods. But our results to date have been quite promising. During the course of this study, we have gained quite a bit of knowledge about the ecology and genetics of the raccoons that inhabit the Virginia barrier islands. So, in the end, this project hasn’t only been “for the birds.”
Note: The views expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, or any of its subagencies.
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Archaeology
Clues to Our Past By Dr. Elizabeth Moore, VMNH Curator of Archaeology
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f you look through the window of the archaeology laboratory at the Virginia Museum of Natural History you are likely to see a wide variety of objects laid out on the tables and counters. On any given day you can see some of the nineteen archaeology volunteers sorting and identifying projectile points and potsherds from the collections or washing artifacts recently brought in from the excavations of an early African-American medical building in Martinsville. Mostly, though, what you will see are animal bones and bone fragments that date to ca. A.D. 900 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 1500. Archaeology is the study of people and their cultures: how and why people lived in different places and environments and what that might tell us about human culture in general. Examining the animal bones from archaeological deposits can be used to infer human behavior in the past. Animal bones provide direct evidence of which species of animals were eaten or hunted for other uses. When certain specific bones and teeth are present you can also deduce
Top: Volunteers measure deer bones from archaeological sites. These measurements can be used to compare the size of deer at different points in time and from different geographic areas. Photo by Melody Cartwright.
what time of year certain animals were hunted. If there are cut marks or burning on the bones you can determine how the animal was butchered and how it was cooked. If you have enough bones from around a village to match elements from a single animal, sometimes you can tell if people shared food from the animals they hunted. Currently under study in the archaeology lab are the assemblages from several Indian villages throughout the Middle Atlantic region that date from ca. A.D. 900 to A.D. 1500. During this time, many Indian tribes in the Eastern United States became more dependent on the plant foods they were growing. While several
Using the Scanning Electron Microscope to determine if cut marks on bones are made with stone or metal tools, I can help colleagues determine if an archaeological site was occupied before or after European contact. The photo on the left is a cut mark made on a deer bone with a metal knife; the other is a cut mark made on a deer bone with a stone tool. Photos by Dr. Elizabeth Moore.
seed crops had been domesticated and exploited for thousands of years, corn, beans, and squash were becoming more critical to support growing human populations. When a culture shifts from nomadic hunting and gathering to more settled farming, many socioeconomic factors other than diet change as well. Social changes must occur to accommodate the different types of work associated with a horticultural or agricultural economic system. With many hunting and gathering groups, the entire group travels throughout a geographic area exploiting natural resources as they become seasonally available. When domesticated crops are a critical food resource however, some segment of the group stays in a central area to tend and protect the crops. Others go off periodically to hunt, to gather plants, to get clay for pottery, to collect specific types of stone for stone tools, or to fight the neighboring tribes, but they return to that main village area. These are very different ways of living. Research I have conducted on the assemblages from several sites representing two periods along the Potomac River indicated that there is a change in the hunting strategies between the two periods. For the earlier of these periods, known as the Montgomery Complex, I selected assemblages that date to circa A.D. 1200. Assemblages from the later of these two periods, the Luray Focus, date to (continued)
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Montgomery Focus frogs/toads bullfrog snapping turtle common musk turtle eastern painted turtle eastern spiny softshell eastern box turtle box and pond turtles lizards coral snakes non-poisonous snakes indeterminate snake common loon whistling swan geese mergansers ruffed grouse common bobwhite wild turkey passenger pigeon pileated woodpecker red-bellied woodpecker woodpeckers northern hog sucker shorthead redhorse golden redhorse silver redhorse brown bullhead striped bass sunfishes minnows perch-like fish trout and allies catfishes snowshoe hare eastern cottontail woodchuck eastern chipmunk eastern gray squirrel eastern fox squirrel squirrel beaver muskrat porcupine opossum mountain lion bobcat dog red fox gray fox fox longtail weasel mink river otter striped skunk black bear raccoon white-tailed deer elk
Luray Focus
frogs/toads snapping turtle eastern spiny softshell eastern box turtle whistling swan red-tailed hawk wild turkey common shiner eastern cottontail woodchuck eastern gray squirrel squirrel beaver muskrat bobcat dog red fox gray fox fox longtail weasel black bear raccoon white-tailed deer elk
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District of Columbia and Pennsylvania. While there are A.D. 1400-1500. some animals that are important throughout that geo During the Montgomery Focus, a large variety of animals were hunted from many habitats. White-tailed graphic area over time (almost everyone relied heavily deer, the most important animal in the diet, were on deer and to some degree, turkey and squirrel) there hunted with a specific strategy that maximized meat are clear regional differences that may not be directly return. The individuals present were primarily those tied to environmental availability. Close examination of of prime meat-bearing age and size. Finally, seasonally such differences may indicate when animals were being available resources such as fish and migrating birds were hunted simply because they were present in an area (for targeted as they became available. As an overall pattern, example, elk are found in assemblages from the mounthe human occupants of these sites appear to have been tains of Pennsylvania but not in the Virginia Coastal maximizing the exploitation of Plain) or because there were many of the animal resources more subtle cultural reasons found in the area. that guided those hunting “Archaeology is the In contrast, during the decisions. Luray Focus only a limited Some interesting quesstudy of people and number of taxa were being tions were raised by what hunted. Many of those animals their cultures: how and I have not found in the were the ones that were probarchaeological record. In spite why people lived in ably found feeding in the of hearing from many people, fields. Few aquatic species were reading on many Web sites, different places and utilized although the sites are and hearing in many presentations that bison were hunted adjacent to the Potomac River environments and what for thousands of years in and ideal for fishing. One Luray Focus site, the Hughes Site, that might tell us about Virginia, I have never identified a bison bone from a prehistoric is located near the Fall Line. It human culture in general.” archaeological site. Nor have is likely that several species of the other zooarchaeologists large anadromous fish would that I have contacted. North have been available at least on a Carolina researchers conducted a study that gathered seasonal basis during spawning runs but do not appear information on all of the plant and animal remains in the faunal assemblage. Overall, seasonally limited resources appear to have been hunted or collected much recovered from all archaeological sites in the state; there is not a single bison bone listed. If bison were present less than during the Montgomery Focus. in Virginia, their bones should be in the archaeologi We can conclude that between the two periods cal record. These bones are large, dense, and not easily represented by the Montgomery Focus and the Luray broken into small unidentifiable fragments. Did the Focus, there was a concentration in the use of very occasional bison make its way into Virginia through productive species such as deer and turkey. (See the a mountain pass and provide a good enough hunting accompanying list of animals present in each period. story to last for generations? Could European explorers Note that this table does not give frequency, just simple have seen one of these infrequent bison and exaggerated presence.) The species being focused on not only have a relatively high body weight relative to the other available their presence to encourage colonists to come where the food was plentiful? Or were there bison in Virginia and animals in their class, but can also be found in gardens we just haven’t excavated the right sites to find their reor garden borders. I am currently analyzing of the faunal assemblages mains? A statewide survey of animal remains, similar to from three villages located in the mountains of Western the one done in North Carolina, would provide a more Pennsylvania and two additional assemblages from the accurate listing of the animals identified in archaeologiMaryland Coastal Plain to examine whether this trend cal assemblages. It would also provide data to make in decreased diversity is seen in other areas beyond more in-depth regional comparisons of animal use over the Potomac Valley or if it is a geographically specific time. This type of survey, as well as continued analysis adaptation. Over the past twenty years I have analyzed of more assemblages can be used to answer this and over half of a million animal bones or bone fragments other questions about how people have used Virginia’s from archaeological sites in Virginia, Maryland, the natural resources over time.
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VMNH Books and Publications VMNH Senior Fellows
Special Publications: Proceedings of the Second Symposium on Southeastern Fox Squirrels, Sciurus niger. N. D. Moncrief, J. W. Edwards, and P. A. Tappe, eds. Pp. 1-84. 1993.
Systematics of the freshwater amphipod genus Crangonyx (Crangonyctidae) in North America. J. Zhang and J. R. Holsinger. Pp. 1-274. 2003.
Amphibians and Reptiles of Assateague and Chincoteague Islands. J. C. Mitchell and J. M. Anderson. Pp. 1-120. 1994.
Re-description and revision of Smitt’s “Floridan Bryozoa” in the Collection of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University. J. E. Winston. Pp.1-160. 2005.
Scale Insects of Northeastern North America: Identification, Biology, and Distribution. Michael Kosztarab. Pp. 1-650. 1996.
A New Species of Squalodon (Mammalia, Cetacea) from the Middle Miocene of Virginia. A. C. Dooley, Jr. Pp. 1-17. 2005.
Developing Staff Resources for Managing Collections. P. S. Cato. Pp. 1-71. 1996.
Geology and Paleontology of the Lee Creek Mine, North Carolina, IV. C. E. Ray, D. J. Bohaska, I. A. Koretsky, L. W. Ward, and L. G. Barnes. Pp.1517. 2008.
The Biology of Tiger Beetles and a Guide to the Species of the South Atlantic States. C. B. Knisley and T. D. Schultz. Pp. 1-210. 1997. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology of Tree Squirrels. M. A. Steele, J. F. Merritt, and D. A. Zegers, eds. Pp 1-310. 1998 Proceedings of the Appalachian Biogeography Symposium. R. P. Eckerlin, ed. Pp. 1-258. 1999. Checklist of the Millipeds of North and Middle America. R. L. Hoffman. Pp. 1-564. 1999. Identification of Waterfowl Breastbones and Avian Osteology (Sterna) of North American Anseriformes. D. W. Oates, E. D. Boyd, and J. S. Ramaekers. Pp. 1-51. 2003. A Classification and Checklist of the Genus Pseudanophthalmus Jeannel (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Trechinae). T. C. Barr, Jr. Pp. 1-52. 2004. A Field Guide to Moths of Eastern North America. C. V. Covell, Jr. Pp. 1-496. 2005. The Hispine Beetles of America North of Mexico (Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae). C. L. Staines. Pp. 1-178. 2006 Memoirs: Evolution of Environments and Hominidae in the African Western Rift Valley. N. T. Boaz, ed. Pp. 1-356. 1990. Molluscan Biostratigraphy of the Miocene, Middle Atlantic Coastal Plain of North America. L. W. Ward. Pp. 1-159. 2001. Molluscan Assemblages of the Chowan River Formation, Part A. L. W. Ward and N. L. Gilinsky. Pp. 1-40. 1993. The Megaflora from the Quantico Locality (Upper Albian), Lower Cretaceous Potomac Group of Virginia. G. R. Upchurch, P. R. Crone, and A. N. Drinnan. Pp. 1-57. 1994. A Synopsis of the North American Centipedes of the Order Scolopendromorpha (Chilopoda). R. M. Shelley. Pp. 1-108. 2002.
Guidebooks: Early to Middle Carnian (Triassic) Flora and Fauna of the Richmond and Taylorsville Basins, Virginia and Maryland, U.S.A. B. Cornet and P. E. Olsen. Pp. 1-83. 1990. Geologic Evolution of the Eastern United States. A. Schultz and E. Compton-Gooding. Pp. 1-304. 1991. Stratford Hall Plantation and Westmoreland State Park: Physical and Cultural Geology, and Paleontology. L. B. Rohr, M. E. Lewis, and L. W. Ward. Pp. 1-93. 2002. Eocene and Oligocene Stratigraphy of Southeastern North Carolina. L. W. Ward. Pp. 1-25. 2003 Geology and Paleontology of the Stratford Hall Plantation and Westmoreland State Park. L.W. Ward and A.C. Dooley Jr., Pp. 1-87. 2005. Geology in the Southside Virginia Piedmont. W. S. Henika, J. Hibbard, J. S. Beard. Pp. 1-30. 2006. Lee Creek, Aurora,North Carolina. L.W. Ward and I. K. Gilmore. Pp. 1-138, 2007.
Dr. Mitchell Byrd College of William & Mary Williamsburg, Virginia Dr. Oliver S. Flint, Jr. Smithsonian Institution Washington DC Dr. William J. Hargis, Jr. Virginia Institute of Marine Science Gloucester Point, Virginia Dr. William A. Shear Hampden Sydney College Hampden Sydney, Virginia Dr. E-An Zen University of Maryland College Park, Maryland VMNH Research Associates Dr. Brian J. Axsmith University of South Alabama Mobile, AL Dr. Michael B. Barber U. S. Forest Service-Jefferson and Washington Forests Salem, Virginia Dr. Donna Boyd Radford University Radford, Virginia Dr. R. P. Stephen Davis, Jr. Univ. of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, North Carolina Dr. Raymond D. Dueser Utah State University Logan, Utah Dr. Ralph P. Eckerlin Northern Virginia Community College Annandale, Virginia Dr. Arthur V. Evans Richmond Virginia Dr. Nicholas C. Fraser National Museums Scotland Edinburgh, Scotland Dr. Steven J. Hageman Appalachian State University Boone, North Carolina Mr. William S. Henika Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, Virginia Dr. Thomas J. Henry Systematic Entomology Laboratory Plant Sciences Institute, USDA-- ARS Washington, DC
Insects of Virginia: Seed bugs of Virginia Heteroptera: Lygaeoidea: Lygaeidae. R. L. Hoffman Pp. i-vi, 1-111. 1996.
Dr. Richard Highton Professor Emeritus University of Maryland College Park, Maryland
Assassin bugs of Virginia (Heteroptera: Reduviidae). R. L. Hoffman. Pp. 1-73. 2006.
Dr. John R. Holsinger Old Dominion University Norfolk, Virginia
Popular Publications: Mountain Lake Region and its Bird Life. D. W. Johnston. Pp. 1-90. 2000. Books listed may be ordered online at www.vmnh.net or by calling 276-634-4141. Other options include fax: 276-634-4199 or e-mail: books@vmnh.virginia.gov. Virginia Museum of Natural History Attention: Publications Order 21 Starling Avenue Martinsville, VA 24112
Dr. Patricia H. Kelley University of North CarolinaWilmington Wilmington, North Carolina
University of Maryland Bethesda, Maryland Dr. Jerry N. McDonald Granville, Ohio Dr. Frank K. McKinney Appalachian State University Boone, North Carolina Dr. Joseph C. Mitchell University of Richmond Richmond, Virginia Dr. Andrew L. Moore Kent State University Kent, OH Dr. Karen Mudar National Park Service Washington, DC Dr. Paul E. Olsen Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory Palisades, New York Dr. John F. Pagels Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, Virginia Dr. Charles R. Parker USGS Biological Resources DivisionGreat Smoky Field Station Gatlinburg, Tennessee Dr. John H. Porter University of Virginia Charlottesville, Virginia Dr. Janet Reid Virginia Museum of Natural History Martinsville, Virginia Dr. Edwin S. Robinson Emeritus Professor Department of Geological Sciences Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, Virginia Dr. Steven M. Roble Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation Division of Natural Heritage Richmond, Virginia Dr. Christopher M. Stevenson Virginia Department of Historic Resources Richmond, Virginia Dr. Hans-Dieter Sues Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History Washington, DC Dr. Richard P. Tollo George Washington University Washington, DC Dr. Robert J. Tracy Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg Virginia Dr. Christopher Tudge American University Washington, DC
Dr. Michael John Klein Richmond, Virginia
Dr. William David Webster University of North CarolinaWilmington Wilmington, North Carolina
Dr. Boris C. Kondratieff Colorado State University Fort Collins, Colorado
Dr. Robert M. Woollacott Harvard University Cambridge, MA
Ms. Marilyn R. London Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History
Affiliated Researchers Ms. Carole L. Nash James Madison University Harrisonburg, Virginia
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Q&A
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What is a museum?
B
y definition, museums are institutions that collect, document, preserve, display, and interpret objects (specimens) for the public benefit. It is the collections of specimens held by museums that distinguish them from other educational and scientific institutions.
What is natural history?
N
Photo by Jay Rosenblatt.
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Virginia Museum of
NATUR AL HIS TORY RESE ARCH
N umber 3 • 2008
atural history is the scientific study of nature, natural objects, and natural phenomena. Natural history research often investigates how organisms evolve, where they live, and how they interact with each other. VMNH’s official charter purposes, as stated in the Code of Virginia are: to investigate, preserve, and exhibit the various elements of natural history found in Virginia and other parts of the United States and the world; to foster an understanding and appreciation of how man and the earth have evolved; to encourage and promote research in the varied natural heritage of Virginia and other parts of the world; to encourage individuals and scholars to study Virginia’s natural history and to apply this understanding of the past to the challenges of the future; to establish a state museum of natural history in Virginia where specimens of natural history, especially those of Virginia origin, can be properly housed, cared for, cataloged, and studied, ensuring that there is a permanent repository for the state’s natural heritage; and, to coordinate an efficient network in Virginia where researchers and the public can readily use natural history material of the Museum, its branches, Virginia’s institutions of higher education, and other museums. Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Martinsville, VA Permit No. 456