CSBR: Ownership Transfer: Securing the future and accessibility of the Carl W. and Marian E. Rettenmeyer army ant guest collection

CSBR：所有权转让：确保 Carl W. 和 Marian E. Rettenmeyer 军蚁客藏的未来和可访问性

• 批准号: 1561640
• 负责人: Janine Caira
• 金额: $ 49.99万
• 依托单位: University of Connecticut
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2016-05-01 至 2020-04-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1561640&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CSBR; Ownership; Transfer; Securing; future

Army ants live in highly complex societies, accompanied by legions of tiny, intimate associates (primarily mites and insects). The study of these host/symbiont systems is precluded by a lack of access to basic information and knowledge about their biology, including physical collections. Resulting from 50 years of fieldwork, the Rettenmeyer Army Ant Guest Collection (AAGC) at the University of Connecticut (UConn) is an unparalleled resource for studying complex systems of social insects. The AAGC comprises more than two million specimens of New World army ants and their associated guests: Hundreds of species of mites, beetles, flies, wasps, springtails, and bristletails. Extensive field notes and numerous photographs complement the biological specimens, detailing intricacies of species interactions. This project will stabilize this collection, addressing critical issues. This project aims to address basic physical storage issues and to make all data publicly available via an on-line database so as to maximize its potential as a source of information on social behavior in insects. A two-part exhibit will engage the campus community. One part will highlight the Rettenmeyers' collecting activities. Across campus, the second part will include a large ant model complete with an array of mites attached all to scale. This project is motivated by the recent donation of the Rettenmeyer Army Ant Guest Collection (AAGC) to the UConn Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Biodiversity Research Collection Facility. The AAGC comprises more than 2 million specimens of New World army ants and their associated arthropods. It includes ca. 1,000 types representing 200 species, ca. 16,000 pinned specimens, ca. 5,000 microscope slides, more than 15,000 vials and jars, complemented by detailed field data and 5,000 Kodachrome transparencies. The collection is in dire need of stabilization - fluid levels are low, stoppers are deteriorating, specimens are overcrowded and disorganized. The project's two primary goals are specimen curation (e.g., replacing fluid, re-vialing, labeling, attaching barcodes, and reorganization) and establishing an on-line presence by modifying an existing MySQL database to accommodate the AAGC in four related Tables. Type specimens and colony exemplars will be image and linked to database records. Data will be shared with iDigBio (www.idigbio.org) and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. High school students will work with graduate students to hone their writing and observation skills as they interpret slide labels to populate the database. Project results can be accessed online (biodiversity.uconn.edu/ant-guests/).

行军蚁生活在高度复杂的社会中，身边有大量微小的亲密伙伴（主要是螨虫和昆虫）。 由于无法获得有关其生物学的基本信息和知识（包括实物收藏），因此无法对这些宿主/共生系统进行研究。康涅狄格大学 (UConn) 的 Rettenmeyer Army Ant Guest Collection (AAGC) 经过 50 年的实地考察，是研究社会性昆虫复杂系统的无与伦比的资源。 AAGC 包含超过 200 万个新世界行军蚁及其相关客人的标本：数百种螨虫、甲虫、苍蝇、黄蜂、弹尾蚁和刚尾蚁。 广泛的实地记录和大量照片补充了生物标本，详细说明了物种相互作用的复杂性。该项目将稳定该收藏，解决关键问题。该项目旨在解决基本的物理存储问题，并通过在线数据库公开所有数据，以最大限度地发挥其作为昆虫社会行为信息来源的潜力。一个由两部分组成的展览将吸引校园社区的参与。其中一部分将重点介绍雷滕迈耶家族的收藏活动。在整个校园中，第二部分将包括一个大型蚂蚁模型，并按比例附有一系列螨虫。该项目的动机是最近向康涅狄格大学生态与进化生物学系生物多样性研究收藏设施捐赠了 Rettenmeyer Army Ant Guest Collection (AAGC)。 AAGC 包含超过 200 万个新世界行军蚁及其相关节肢动物样本。它包括大约。约 1,000 种，代表 200 个物种。约 16,000 个固定样本5,000 张显微镜载玻片、15,000 多个小瓶和罐子，辅以详细的现场数据和 5,000 张柯达彩色胶片。藏品迫切需要稳定——液位低、塞子老化、标本过度拥挤且杂乱无章。该项目的两个主要目标是样本管理（例如，更换液体、重新装瓶、贴标签、附加条形码和重组）以及通过修改现有 MySQL 数据库以在四个相关表中容纳 AAGC 来建立在线状态。模式标本和群体样本将被成像并链接到数据库记录。数据将与 iDigBio (www.idigbio.org) 和全球生物多样性信息设施共享。 高中生将与研究生合作，在解释幻灯片标签以填充数据库时磨练他们的写作和观察技能。项目结果可以在线访问（biodiversity.uconn.edu/ant-guests/）。