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Welcome
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The Illinois Natural History Amphibian and Reptile Collection contains approximately 21,000 catalogued specimens, representing 55 families and over 550 species (51% Amphibia, 49% Reptilia). The geographical emphasis is Illinois (66%). This is the result of the efforts of Phil W. Smith, who collected specimens from 1935 to 1949 for his comprehensive study "The Amphibians and Reptiles of Illinois," published in 1961. In addition to the Illinois material, the INHS collection also houses specimens from 45 other U.S. states, Canada, the Caribbean, Mexico, South America, Asia, Africa, and Europe. Most notable among these are specimens collected by P.W. Smith from California (1943-1952) and Mexico (1957-1965), specimens of S.A. Minton from Pakistan, Mexico and Texas and specimens from Thailand collected by R.W. Larimore (1963). This collection may be searched by choosing the appropriate link on the left navigation bar. The search engine will deliver limited location information. Detailed location data may be obtained by contacting the curator (see the appropriate link on the left navigation bar).
We also maintain a tissue collection that contains high quality tissues from a small portion of our vouchered specimens, mostly those collected after 1998. This collection may be searched by choosing the appropriate link on the left navigation bar. The search engine will deliver limited location information. Detailed location data may be obtained by contacting the curator (see the appropriate link on the left navigation bar).
In addition, we maintain a separate tissue collection for which we do not have corresponding voucher specimens. These tissues are from amphibians and reptiles that are threatened or endangered at some level or represent large series of animals from long-term research conducted in the Herpetology lab at INHS. Examples include several hundred blood samples from our Eastern Massasasuga (Sistrurus c. catenatus) research and several large series of freshwater turtles (Emydoidea blandingii, Trachemys scripta, Chrysemys picta, Pseudemys concinna, Terrapene carolina) and Ozark Hellbenders, Cryptobranchus alleganiensis. Contact the curator for more details.
In October 1997, the INHS took over curation and management
of the University of Illinois Museum of Natural History Amphibian
and Reptile
Collection.
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