At the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, we still accept
donations of shell collections. There are several caveats.
 
1. We can't agree to keep all the material in a collection; some might be
given or traded to other institutions, sold in a public sale (accredited
museums are not allowed sell material privately), or used for teaching
within the museum. We might keep anywhere from 5% to 100% of a collection.
Before accepting a donation, I inform the donor how much of their collection
is likely to be incorporated into our permanent research collection. If we
do not keep material, it is usually because of poor locality data, or
because the material duplicates our holdings.
 
The importance of locality data varies with the species. If we do not have
any specimens of a species, we'll catalogue a specimen without any locality
data whatsoever. We're not picky about data if we have fewer than ten
specimens of a species. If we have several hundred specimens of a species,
we might insist on having detailed ecological information for additional
specimens, and we might not add single specimens, preferring large lots
instead. (Fifty specimens from fifty sites occupy far more room that fifty
specimens from one site.)
 
2. We can't keep an individual's collection together. Anything that goes
into the research collection is integrated in systematic order with the rest
of the collection. The label with each lot states who donated the material.
Also, everything catalogued into our collection since 1976 is computerized,
so it is easy to generate a list of material donated by a particular person.
This data is also available on Internet. For example, to see what Marvin
Hyett or C. L. Richardson donated to us, search by last name at
<gopher://erato.acnatsci.org:70/11/.mala>
 
3. We can't agree to put something on display in perpetuity. We have
fourteen million specimens, so only the smallest fraction will ever be on
display. (But, if you're in Philadelphia, make an appointment for a
behind-the-scenes tour.)
 
4. The donor must have acquired all specimens legally. This is going to
cause increasing problems in the future, as laws for permits become stricter
and more complex. It might reach the point where it is impossible to accept
collections because of such questions. I would advise that collectors who
plan to donate their collections in thirty years establish a relationship
with an institution now. The staff there can help advise on getting
collecting and import permits.
 
5. Some institutions don't have space or funds to add material even if it is
of scientific value. Our cost for housing material is about $0.20 per lot
per year. This is just the cost of keeping the roof on the building,
heating, air conditioning, sweeping the floor, etc. I calculate this as
follows: we have about 460,000 lots, and the department takes up 11,000
square feet. Our overhead cost is $8.40/sq. ft. Some of our space is
occupied by library and offices, but literature and people are necessary to
maintain the collection, so it is reasonable to consider all department
space as supporting the collection: $8.40/sq. ft/year. x (11000 sq.
ft./460000 lots) = $0.2009/lot/year.  To "endow" a lot would cost $4.00: the
U.S. stock market returns 10% in the long run, so $4.00 yields $0.40/year,
half of which pays the annual cost of overhead for the specimen, and half of
which is reinvested so that the endowment keeps up with inflation.
 
In addition to the annual maintainance cost there is an up-front cost to
catalogue a specimen, which ranges from $2 to $5 per lot, depending on how
much curation a collection needs. This is the cost to sort the donated
material, identify it (or confirm the identification), rehouse it in
standard vials and boxes, computerize it, print acid-free labels, and
distribute it to the proper place in the collection. Our ultimate total cost
per lot is $6 to $9: $2 to $5 per lot for curation plus $4/lot to house it
forever. Thus incorporating a collection of 10,000 lots cost us $60,000 to
$90,000. That is why museums think twice about accepting donations.
Preserving scientifically important collections is our mission, but with
limited resources, we have to be careful what we preserve.
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Gary Rosenberg, Ph.D.                     [log in to unmask]
Malacology & Invertebrate Paleontology    gopher://erato.acnatsci.org
Academy of Natural Sciences               http://www.acnatsci.org
1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway            Phone 215-299-1033
Philadelphia, PA 19103-1195 USA           Fax   215-299-1170