Status of Collections

• As of December 2009, the institute holds approximately 1.75 million specimens, obtained through various survey/research projects and donations.

<The number of specimens housed at NIBR (as of December 2009)>

≶Collections preservation facilities at NIBR>

Division	Source
	Survey/ research project	Donation	Total
Vascular plants	223,570	14,681	238,251
Non-vascular plants and fungi	117,765	1,803	119,568
Vertebrates	20,705	5,231	25,918
Invertebrates	994,356	349,849	1,344,205
Tissue/DNA	25,975		25,975
Total	1,382,371	371,546	1,753,917

Collections Preservation Facilities

• With a total area of 6,526 m², the collections preservation facilities are the largest in Asia. Comprising 19 major storage areas for preserved specimens, fresh tissues, and genetic materials of plants, fungi, algae, lichens, invertebrates, and vertebrates, the storage facilities have a maximum capacity of over 11 million specimens.
• The storage areas are equipped with custom-designed compactor units, automatic climate control systems, UV-free lighting, and halon gas extinguishing systems.

<Collections preservation facilities at NIBR>

≶Collections preservation facilities at NIBR>

	Storage area	Area (㎡)
Plants	Vascular plant collections storage	688
	Non-vascular plant collections storage	218
	Plant type specimens storage	218
	Liquid-preserved plant collections storage	218
	Plant collections storage	423
	Seed collections storage	317
Animals	Vertebrate collections storage	423
	Liquid-preserved vertebrate collections storage	485
	Invertebrate collections storage	822
	Insect collections storage 1	301
	Insect collections storage 2	378
	Liquid-preserved insect collections storage	218
	Animal type specimens storage	218
Genetic Resources	Genetic Resources Cold storage	21
	Genetic Resources Cryo-storage	59
	Genetic Resources storage 1	317
	Genetic Resources storage 2	218
General	Temporary storage: Dry specimens	492
	Temporary storage: Liquid-preserved specimens	492
total	6,526

Specimen Preparation and Management Facilities

• The Institute also has facilities for making and processing various types of specimens. These include specimen preparation rooms for vascular plants, non-vascular plants, vertebrates, invertebrates, and insects; a drying room; a specimen loan processing room; a photography and image processing room; and a fumigation room.