The employment of a full-time collections manager since 1998 has resulted in the centralisation of collections-based activities such as the safeguarding of the collections and management of the loan system and type collection.

Ongoing activities

  • Specimen loans: the management of outgoing and incoming loans, and tracing of outstanding loans. The use of outside experts to identify specimens is an invaluable method of adding value to the collections of the SANC

     

  • Safeguarding the collections from pests and deterioration. Research into regimes that will reduce the use of insecticide in the collections

     

  • Databasing of the primary type collection (approximately 2000 specimens) and associated literature

     

  • Research into currents trends in collections management, and the development of new policies, procedures and protocols

     

  • Curation of various collections to incorporate the latest taxonomic publications

     

  • Attempts to reduce backlogs of unprocessed material and increase tempo of inclusion into the collections after labelling and classification


Staff:

Ros Urban, Herbert Bennett, Khumo Mwase, Johanna du Plessis, Simon Mamogale
Campus: Biosystematics, Roodeplaat (West), Pretoria

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