The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

- collections databasing at the

Australian Museum

Dr Penny Berents – Head of Natural Science Collections

2011 Global EMu Users Meeting, 11 -14th Oct

Australian Museum Collections

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• 11 different collection databases

• 7 servers

• 10 in Texpress

• 1 in Dataease

• varied data standards and formats

Collection databases - 2000

• >18 million specimens

• estimate 3.9 million Catalogue records

• currently 1.67 million Catalogue records

Collection databases - 2011

• 100% = Mammals, Birds, Reptiles, Fish,

Marine Invertebrates, Arachnology

• 30% = Entomology, Malacology

• 13% = Mineralogy, Palaeontology

Collection databases - 2011

1. Data access

2. Efficient collection management

3. Collection development

Opportunities

OZCAM records

Collection RecordsAustralian Museum 895,113Museum Victoria 519,351CSIRO 210,040Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery 41,717Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery 10,534Museum and Gallery of Northern Territory 192,310

South Australian Museum 164,385Western Australian Museum 262,123Queensland Museum 26,589OZCAM TOTAL 2,322,091

1. Data access

2. Efficient collection management

3. Collection development

Opportunities

1997 - 2003

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1. Data access

2. Efficient collection management

3. Collection development

Opportunities

Geographic gaps

Distribution of records

Australian Alps

Inland NSW

1. Data capture

2. Auditors

3. Internal tensions

Challenges

1. Data capture

2. Auditors

3. Internal tensions

Challenges

1. Data capture

2. Auditors

3. Internal tensions

Challenges

Acknowledgments

• Dr Sandy Ingleby - Collection Manager, Mammalogy

• Mark McGrouther – Collection Manager, Ichthyology

• Collection Informatics Unit – Paul Flemons, Dr Mick Ashcroft

Thank you

www.australianmuseum.com.au

penny.berents@austmus.gov.au