Purdue Entomological Research CollectionJulie Speelman PI: Jeff Holland
Department of EntomologyWest Lafayette, Indiana
Facilities• Located in the basement of Smith Hall • Comprised of a museum with compactor shelves (920 sq ft)• A systematics research lab (510 sq ft)• Office space for the staff
StatisticsApproximately 2,250,000 specimens representing 150,000 species
Dry preserved: 1,300,000Alcohol preserved:920,000Slides: 30,000
Specimens are from the mid-1890s to present
Top Five Taxa
Order # Specimens Drawers % of pinned collection
Coleoptera 550,000 628 40 %
Lepidoptera 187,000 236 14 %
Hymenoptera 174,000 199 13 %
Diptera 145,000 175 11 %
Hemiptera 140,000 157 10 %
Geographic Distribution• 60% of all specimens
from Indiana
• All eastern groups represented
• Worldwide collection of Ephemeroptera and Odonata
Special Collections
Launched in 1995
Largest collection of mayflies in the world
3900 mayfly type specimens
687,570 specimens in 65,520 vials
G.F. Edmunds: Worldwide collection W.P. McCafferty :North American collection
http://www.entm.purdue.edu/mayfly/index.php
Special Collection
W.S. Blatchley Collection
A collection of Hemiptera, Orthoptera, and Coleoptera
Primarily specimens from Indiana and Florida1896-1934
Chandler Bee CollectionOne of the largest and most complete collection of bees in North America
Majority of specimens from Midwest in 1950s-1970s
Other Notable Collections
B.E. Montgomery• Part of his Odonate collection collected in the Midwest 1940s
to 1960s
F. Young• Aquatic beetle collection from 1960s and 1970s
T. Meyers• Dolichopodidae collected in 1960s and 1970s
R.T. Everly• Carabidae collection: Ohio and Indiana from 1950s and 1960s
Strengths of the PERCRecognized internationally:
• 2250 type specimens
• The Blatchley Collection of Coleoptera
• General Aquatic Insect Collection
• The Ephemeroptera collection
Functions• To provide a reference source for implementing the accurate and
timely identification of insects for research, extension, and teaching needs.
• To serve as a database for systematic research at Purdue and by specialists throughout the world.
• To serve as a repository for voucher specimens from field and laboratory research.
• To provide a facility for maintaining representatives of the insect fauna of Indiana habitats and surrounding regions.
OutreachExtension activities:
Annual Butterfly Count for community
Activities with school children
Bug Bowl
Indiana State Fair