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Search the Collections

Behind the scenes, natural history museums hold vast collections that are the key to earth’s biodiversity, past, present, and future. Datasets describing these collections are curated by collections staff and used worldwide for research. The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science (NMMNHS) Research Collections Database includes over 110,000 records documenting fossils and biological specimens held by the museum.

Use the links below to search all NMMNHS collections, or one collection at a time. Our data is rich and complex! This means the search options may seem overwhelming. Start simple. Find everything at the museum collected in the county in which you live or figure out how many “roadrunners” (Geococcyx) the museum has in its collection. Look for the museum’s “Bisti Beast” fossils and find out which one is on exhibit and has a 3D video attached.

Before visiting for the first time, you may want to explore some resources linked below for using the database:
Learn Arctos and take Quick Tours: https://arctosdb.org/learn
Arctos as an Ecosystem: https://arctosdb.org/about/details/ecosystem
This webinar discusses how to search the database: www.youtube.com/watch?v=trUpCKlEqQA&feature=youtu.be

To help you get started, watch this Arctos tutorial video created by our Collections Department:

 

 

Search All NMMNH&S Collections
The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science (NMMNHS) Research Collections Database includes over 110,000 records documenting fossils and biological specimens held by the museum.

Search NMMNH&S Amphibians and Reptiles
The NMMNHS Amphibian and Reptile Collection is a small collection of approximately 50 specimens from the Southwestern US. Most of the specimens are fluid-preserved, with a few skeletonized. The collection grows from salvage and incidental catches.

 

Search NMMNH&S Birds
The NMMNHS Bird collection includes approximately 600 specimens with a focus on the Southwestern US. These specimens were collected as salvage or incidental catches. Tissues are held at the Museum of Southwestern Biology, Division of Genomic Resources Collection.

 

 

Search NMMNH&S Fossils

The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science paleontology collection contains approximately 80,000 cataloged Items. The strengths of the collection include the fauna and flora of the Kinney Brick Pennsylvanian Lagerstätten, Permian trackways and traces, Triassic reptiles and amphibians, Late Cretaceous invertebrates and reptiles, Paleocene mammals and reptiles, and Neogene mammals.

Search NMMNH&S Insects
The NMMNHS Entomology collection has grown from various donors, volunteers and staff since the opening of the museum. There are around 7500 specimens, with a focus in spiders, beetles, and butterflies from the Southwestern US. The spiders are primarily preserved in alcohol while the insects are pinned.

Search NMMNH&S Mammals
The NMMNHS Mammal collection has 6000 specimens focused on the Southwestern US and Mexico. Tissues are held at the Museum of Southwestern Biology, Division of Genomic Resources Collection.

 

Search NMMNH&S Non-Insect Invertebrates
The NMMNHS Mollusc collection was started by the donation of the Ostheimer Collection when the museum opened. The collection also includes a land snail collection from Dr. Rick Smartt and various smaller collections from donors, volunteers and staff. The Mollusc collection has around 15,000 specimens, with the majority in the dry collection. Many of the specimens are from the Southwestern US, but the majority represents the Mollusca biodiversity from the Pacific-Indian Oceans.

Search NMMNH&S Plants
The NMMNHS Herbarium has mostly grown from volunteer and staff collecting. The collection focuses on New Mexico and has more than 3500 specimens. We are actively collecting and adding to the collection.

 

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Search NMMNH&S Minerals and Rocks

The New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science mineral and rock collection contains over 3,000 specimens both from New Mexico and representative mineral species from around the world.

  

Arctos is managed by a consortium of museums and organizations that collaborate to serve data from natural and cultural history collections. Not only does it provide research-grade data to scientists, it also makes those data and digital media accessible to the general public.

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