Center for Integrative Biological Collections
CIBC's mission is to advance research and teaching in biodiversity and to provide support for the management of natural resources by fostering an interdepartmental alliance among UCR's world-class natural history collections. This will be accomplished through integrated and transformative approaches across UCR collections that leverage novel systems in communication, relational databases, datamining, georeferencing, outreach, advocacy and securing enhanced funding.
Why Natural History?
Natural history collections are a library of biological specimens and their associated data that are used to better understand the world. Traditionally they include preserved material that records, over time and geography, the historical basis for species and ecological diversity.
The CIBC Collections
NEMATOLOGY
The UCR Nematode Collection, established in 1956, comprises ~370,000 mounted specimens and thousands of original types. Worldwide, it is among the two or three largest and most important collections to the discipline of nematology.
CITRUS VARIETY
The UCR Citrus Variety Collection, initiated in 1910 for the UC Citrus Experiment Station, is now one of the most extensive living collections of citrus diversity globally, encompassing approximately 4500 trees representing more than 1,000 accessions of citrus and citrus relatives.
EARTH SCIENCE
Earth Sciences Collections curates several worldwide collections including fossils (~100,000 specimens) of invertebrates, vertebrates and plants as well as several thousand minerals and rocks, all essential resources for research, outreach (e.g. displays) and teaching.
ENTOMOLOGY
The UCR Entomology Research Museum is the second oldest UC collection of insects and other arthropods and contains ~3 million curated specimens, making it one of the 10 largest University-based collections in North America.
HERBARIUM
The UCR Herbarium houses over 259,000 specimens of vascular plants and lichens and is the 5th largest herbarium in California (just ahead of San Diego Natural History Museum and right behind UC Davis). It also is linked to UCR's fungus collection (c. 10,000 specimens, housed in Plant Pathology).
BOTANIC GARDENS
The UCR Botanic Gardens includes 40 hilly acres and more than 3500 plants with emphasis on native plants from California, Mexico, and other Mediterranean and desert climates. It is a resource for UCR teaching biology and plant biology, while also serving as a wildlife sanctuary.
Facilities
LATEST PUBLICATIONS
Ongoing Research
Collections-based research at UCR ranges from discovery of new species, both past and present, to uncovering their evolutionary relationships, understanding their impact on the environment, and ultimately monitoring changes in both our fauna and flora over time.
