ABOUT MARINE COLLECTIONS DATABASE

This specimen database covers marine invertebrates and marine plants that were collected by the Coral Reef Research Foundation (CRRF) under contract to the U.S. National Cancer Institute, Natural Products Branch, which also funded their taxonomic identification. A variety of other specimens were collected by CRRF through other projects. Updated higher sponge taxonomy is not yet consistent throughout the full database. The data are based on museum specimens deposited at: California Academy of Sciences, Invertebrate Zoology (CASIZ), US Algal Collection of the US National Herbarium (US Alg. Coll), US National Herbarium (US), National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (NTM) and Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris (MNHN). A complete set of reference specimens from the 22 years of collections is also held at the Smithsonian Institution, however these are held separate from the accessioned collection and require special permission to access. CRRF fish specimens are not included in this database and have been deposited at the Royal Ontario Museum, The Field Museum, B.P. Bishop Museum and other institutions.