The skeletal collection at Yale Peabody Museum was initially created by O.C. Marsh for use as comparative material for his paleontological studies.
For
some time the skeletal collections of all modern vertebrates were
united into a single Osetology Division. In recent years this formal
division was dissolved, and all skeletal specimens are now maintained
within the Division of Vertebrate Zoology.
Constantly growing, the herpetology skeletal collection currently contains over 2,500 amphibians and reptiles. Some specimens are fully articulated and mounted for use in education and for occasional exhibition. Most, however, are semi-articulated, used by researchers studying topics ranging from pathology to systematics.
Rana catesbeiana display mount
used for teaching by the Public Education Department and Yale University.
The Division has recently begun preparing fully disarticulated specimens, which are especially useful for archaeological research and to those studying fossil amphibians and reptiles. Field studies in these 2 areas often result in small skeletal fragments.
The Division’s ichthyology
skeletal collection contains several hundred fish skeletons. Most are
from North America, with an emphasis on local New England species. The
collection continues to grow with the recent addition of fully
disarticulated specimens, which could be of particular use to
ethnozoologists and paleontologists.
This skull of a Lophiid fish clearly shows
the large teeth and wide mouth
of this predatory bottom-dwelling species.
The skeletal collection of mammals
is small (4,776 specimens, over 770 species), but historically
important, and contains a disproportionate number of large animals.
Included are one of only 7 complete skeletons of the now extinct quagga, several tapirs, elephants, giraffes, and African antelopes; and a large series of buffalo skulls from the 1870s.
Also of interest is the Leon F. Whitney Collection of champion show dogs, and exotic circus animals donated to the Museum by P.T. Barnum and his successors.
The skeleton collection in ornithology
contains just over 9,000 bird specimens representing about 1,900
species. All but a handful of specimens are post-1950, and more than
50% are post-1965. There is good geographic representation, with
collections from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Dominican Republic,
Kenya, New Guinea, New Zealand and Thailand. In the United States,
collections are from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Maryland,
Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York.
Sarcoramphus papa, YPM 102273.
The disarticulated skeleton collection is a useful comparative resource
for species-level determination. It was recently used in a study of
bird feeding ecology. Many birds, including owls and caracara, swallow
prey essentially whole and produce a pellet containing the undigestable
parts, such as skeletal fragments. (See, for example, Postilla 220, “Diet of a Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) on a Small Coastal Connecticut Island,” by Jon A. Moore, C. Lewis and M. R. Anderson,1999.)
The Yale Peabody Museum’s collections are available to legitimate
researchers for scholarly use. Loans are issued to responsible
individuals at established institutions. Loans and access to the
collection can be arranged through the Collections Manager.
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