1. Loan Requests. Loan requests should include full taxonomic information on the specimens requested (Order, Family, Subfamily, Tribe, Genus, Species), as well as the borrower's name, institutional affiliation, faculty sponsor (if needed), mailing address, e-mail, and phone number. Direct requests to the Curator:
Dr. Scott R. Shaw, Curator
U.W. Insect Museum
Room 4025, Agriculture
Building
University of Wyoming
Laramie, Wyoming 82071-3354
Inquiries
about the collection can be made by telephone: (307) 766-5338 or by
e-mail: braconid@plains.uwyo.edu
No loans will be shipped during the month of December.
2. Procedure for Approval of New Loans. Approval for a new loan must be given by a faculty curator. Approval is subject to the considerations outlined below. The borrower agrees to abide by the rules set forth here.
3. Institutional Affiliation. The borrower must have an affiliation with some research institution. Loans will not be mailed to a home address. The only exception is for senior retired scientists who remain active with research, and have access to a microscope and collection storage equipment. Individuals without such affiliation may borrow under the condition that they are sponsored by an individual with such affiliation, and agree to study the material at the sponsor's institution.
4. Past Loan History. New requests are filled only after past loans are returned, or reasons are given for granting a loan extension. New additional loans may be granted during the period of an existing loan if they are an extension of the same project. Requests from individuals with histories of not returning, losing, or breaking specimens may be rejected.
5. Students. Loans are not made directly to students. Student borrowers must have a faculty sponsor who agrees to take full responsibility for the care and safe return of the specimens. The student must leave the specimens in the custody of their faculty sponsor for safe return in the event that they leave the University.
6. First-Time Borrowers. At the discretion of the curator, loans to first-time borrowers may be limited in size. More specimens may be loaned in subsequent loans, once the borrower has established a pattern of safely and promptly returning specimens. In most cases, a maximum of three (3) types will be loaned to a first-time borrower.
7. Size of the Request. In most cases, every specimen of an entire group (higher taxon) will not be loaned at once; some representative vouchers from series of identified material will be held in the collection. For exceptionally large requests, involving hundreds or thousands of specimens, the researcher is encouraged to either limit the size of the request or visit our Museum instead.
8. Primary Types. Types will normally be loaned for not more than six months. No new loans will be approved until types from past loans are returned. Holotypes and entire syntypic series will ordinarily be loaned only for revisionary and monographic work. Requests for loan of types should include type data (number of specimens, localities) as originally published and/or references to original descriptions. Types of new species based on U.W. specimens may be deposited in other museums only after obtaining permission from the Curator; holotypes of species from Wyoming and a majority of any newly designated paratypes (from U.W. material) should be deposited at Laramie. All borrowed types must be returned promptly, via certified, insured, or registered air mail. Any lectotypes or neotypes should be clearly labeled as such with year and name of designator. Workers needing to examine type material of many species are urged to visit the U.W. Insect Museum. The Curator reserves the right to limit the size of type loans.
9. Non-Types. Non-types are usually loaned for the duration of the study; however, depending on the scope of the project and the number of specimens involved, a specific time period may be set. The borrower should submit a brief progress report to the Curator on annual intervals. Subject to approval by the Curator, a portion (at most 1/3) of true duplicate specimens (from series) identified by the borrower may be retained. We prefer that such retentions be part of an exchange of equal benefit. All unique specimens, including unique locality records, must be returned. Determination labels with determiner's name and date should be placed on the first specimen of each series and all unique specimens identified during revisionary or other detailed studies.
10. Condition of the Specimens. If the Curator judges the condition of the requested specimen to be such that damage is likely to be incurred by shipping, the request will be rejected on those grounds. This is particularly true in the case of delicate Odonata, Neuroptera, or Lepidoptera, or other specimens with loose abdomens, wings, legs, or weak pins. In the case of historically important specimens, or otherwise rare or unusual specimens, loan requests may be rejected at the discretion of the curator, on the grounds that the specimen(s) is(are) too valuable to be trusted to the mail. In the case of such specimens, the researcher will be encouraged to visit our museum.
11. Extensions. Loan extensions are negotiable on an individual basis. As long as there have been no other requests for the material, extensions are usually granted while the researcher is actively working on the project. It is the responsibility of the borrower to contact the curator for an extension, either by writing or by calling (307) 766-5338.
12. Publication of Results. The borrower should acknowledge the loan in any paper based on study of the borrowed material, and send a copy of the paper to the curator. To avoid confusion with other museums, the acronym RMSEL is suggested.
13. Change of Address. It is the responsibility of the borrower to inform the curator in a timely manner of any change of address. Borrowed specimens should not be moved to a new collection or location until permission for the transfer is granted.
14. Transfers. Borrowed specimens should not be loaned secondarily or transferred to the care of other researchers unless permission for the transfer is granted by the Curator.
15. Care of Specimens. All borrowed specimens should be kept in units, boxes, or drawers that are clearly marked to indicate that they are from RMSEL or the University of Wyoming Insect Museum. If, during the course of study, specimens are mixed with specimens from other collections, then our specimens should be affixed with individual labels to indicate that they are part of the RMSEL collection. The borrower takes full responsibility for care of specimens; they should be protected from breakage, dust, and museum pests.
16. Dissection. Dissection is allowed, at the discretion of the researcher, when such work is deemed necessary to resolve taxonomic questions. All dissected parts should be preserved in permanent mounts and returned with the remainder of the loan. If parts are separated from a specimen, they should be labeled with complete data from the original specimen. Paratypes should be dissected only when necessary to resolve a difficult taxonomic problem. Holotypes should not be dissected. Researchers should contact the curator before conducting dissections that will result in the total destruction of specimens.
17. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Duplicates from series may be dissected and/or coated as necessary for SEM studies. Primary types should not be coated for SEM work.
18. Loan forms. Paper loan forms are no longer used, since the computerization of collection records in 1989. Any damage caused during shipping should be reported to the Curator at the time of receipt.
19. Loans to Visitors. Visitors are allowed to hand-carry loans of specimens selected during their visit; however, the loan must first be approved and full information (see part 1 above) provided to the staff before any specimens leave the collection.
20. Shipment of Returning Specimens. Borrowers are encouraged to return all specimens as soon as possible after the completion of a project, and before starting new unrelated projects. In the case of very large loans, partial returns are encouraged as lots of material are studied. Please do not ship any specimens (types/non-types) during December. A separate cover letter should give full particulars from the original loan request. Primary types should be pinned in individual units and sent via certified, insured, or registered air mail. Specimens should be securely pinned, and all heavy specimens or loose parts should be brace-pinned. Packing materials should be lightweight, and at least two (2) inches of packing material should surround the specimen box. An inner shipping label should be placed in the box, in case the outer label is lost or damaged. The outside of the box should be clearly marked: "Fragile -- Dead Insects for Scientific Research -- No Commercial Value."
Last Revised April 30, 1997
Scott R. Shaw
Associate Professor & Curator