Engaging with natural history collections offers students an introduction to specimen-based research and helps build skills relevant to taxonomy, biodiversity science, and data management. In a graduate-level taxonomy course at Washington State University, students participated in a specimen digitization project using the MT James Entomological Collection. Each student selected a focal taxon, digitized and georeferenced label data from 50 or more museum specimens, generated a distribution map, and captured high-resolution images with an imaging system. They also prepared a short publication-style paper summarizing their findings.
Students developed skills in applying nomenclatural rules, managing specimen data, and working with digitization workflows commonly used in museum curation. This project not only deepened student understanding of specimen-based research and the value of biodiversity data aggregation, but also contributed to the long-term goal of making our collection data publicly accessible. By integrating digitization into coursework, students gained taxonomic research experience while supporting the broader mission of collection accessibility and data mobilization.
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