The bird collection of The Field Museum houses one of the largest and most comprehensive scientific collections of birds in the world. The collection began as a byproduct of the Field Columbian Exposition in 1893, when Ornithology was one of six scientific departments of the new museum. The first large core collection came with the hiring of C. B. Cory in 1906. The next fifty years were a period of major acquisition of large collections from around the world. In 1920, the collection contained about 50,000 specimens, by 1940 it had grown to 137,000, and in 1960 it held 262,000 specimens. Following accession and cataloging of a major acquisition in 1980, the collection numbered about 310,000 specimens. As a result of a vigorous collecting program, the collections have grown substantially over the past fifteen years. Today there are more than 400,000 specimens in the Bird Division's skin and anatomical collections. Today, the Division of Birds houses the third largest scientific bird collection in the United States. The main collection contains over 410,000 specimens, including 600 holotypes, 30,000 skeletons, and 6,000 fluid specimens. In addition, the division houses 16,500 egg sets and 200 nests. The scope of the collection is world-wide; all bird families but one are represented, as are 85% of the world's species. Included among its many historically and scientifically valuable individual collections are the H. B. Conover Game Bird Collection, Good's and Van Someren's African collections, C. B. Cory's West Indian collection, the Bishop Collection of North American birds, a large portion of W. Koelz's material from India and the Middle East, and many separate collections from South America, Africa and the Philippines. As priorities and staffing of educational institutions shift, teaching and research collections can often become orphaned. The Division of Birds has demonstrated a willingness to work with these institutions to ensure that their collections receive proper care. However, when administrators are unwilling or unable to maintain collections at their institutions, it is important that museums offer to house and curate them. In recognition of this responsibility, The Field Museum has accepted three such collections in recent years (from Northern Illinois University, Princeton University and the University of Miami). Geographic Strengths-The collection is strongest in North American (including all species and virtually all subspecies), Neotropical and African material (about 95% of species in both areas), the Philippines and India. Significant additional holdings exist from all regions of the world except Micronesia. Even in areas of relative weakness, however, large-scale exchange programs with other museums have resulted in at least synoptic representation. Skin Collection-The Bird Division's skin collection ranks third in absolute size among the North American collections, and is fourth largest in the world. In systematic and geographic breadth, the ranking is roughly the same. In addition, certain of its holdings are as extensive and complete as any in the world (e.g., Conover game Bird Collection, Van Someren and Good central African collections). Eggs-The egg collection, which includes a portion of the massive and renowned R. M. Barnes collection, ranks sixth in size in North America (with 16,500 sets). Skeletal and Fluid Preserved Material-The Field Museum holdings in skeletal and fluid-preserved specimens rank seventh and tenth in size in the world, respectively. Because of their growing importance in avian systematic studies, the anatomical collections have been the focus of special efforts by the Bird Division staff over the last five years. In the three years between the first two editions of the "Avian Skeletal Specimen Inventory," The Field Museum has jumped from thirteenth to seventh in overall size and from twelfth to seventh in overall breadth. This effort to expand the anatomical holdings is expected to continue in the next several decades. Frozen Tissues-In recognition of the increasing importance of biochemical approaches in evolutionary biology, a collection of frozen tissues has been established within the Bird Division. Salvage Program-In addition, the Bird Division operates a salvage program that adds between 1,000 and 2,000 specimens per year to its collection, chiefly anatomical specimens of local and migratory North American Birds. Other Zoology Collections: Amphibians and Reptiles | Birds | Fishes | Insects | Invertebrates | Mammals