7871

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 7871
• Author: Snyder, D. E.
• Title: Preserved Larval and Small-Fish Collections of the Upper Colorado River Basin
• USFW Year: 1996.
• USFW - Doc Type: Maintenance and Cataloging of a Valuable Historical Database - Final Report.
• Copyright Material: NO

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LFL COLLECTION POLICIES AND PROCEDURES MANUAL

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voucher material outside of Colorado and the Upper Colorado River Basin should first be
offered to more regionally appropriate and more permanent repositories. LFL defers
deposition of type specimens to permanent museum collections, but does maintain specimens
used for description or illustration of early life stages. LFL does not knowingly accept
illegally or unethically collected, obtained, or transferred specimens. LFL does not buy or
sell specimens.

Contributions of Specimens-Offers must be approved by the curator before specimens
are deposited with the LFL Collection. When possible, the donor is asked to also contribute
sufficient funds to cover initial curatorial costs including cataloging, standardized collection
containers, and organization on collection shelving. However, this is not a precondition to
consideration of an offer. Except when provided for by contract, deposited specimens must
be accompanied by a letter or other document of conveyance signed by the donor and
whenever possible by copies of any government permits required for their collection, culture,
or transfer. LFL will acknowledge receipt of specimens and its willingness to accept,
accession, and maintain them as part of the LFL Collection. Material contributed without
funds for initial curation may be accessioned, stored, and minimally maintained until LFL is
otherwise able to cover those costs.
Contributed specimens must be adequately labeled and, whenever possible,
accompanied by corresponding sets of collection and specimen data and associated
documentation (e.g., copies of field notes, listings or computer databases of collection and
specimen data, and copies of, or reference to, pertinent reports and publications). Collection
data should include at least collection date, location, and if available, latitude and longitude or
UTM coordinates. Specimen data should include at least taxon name and, if available,
number of specimens and length information. Gift or exchange specimens received from
other collections should be accompanied by copies of associated catalog records and other
data maintained in regard to those specimens. Offers, documents of conveyance, related
correspondence, and data submitted with contributed specimens are maintained in appropriate
LFL Collection files.

Accessions-Accessioning is the formal process of adding a set of deposited
collections to LFL Collection holdings. It is accomplished by (1) assigning a unique
accession number to the set (the current or next available date in the form of year-Roman
numeral month-day; e.g., 1996-IV -24), (2) entering that number and selected information
about the set of collections (source and responsible contact; description of where, how, when,
why and by whom the set of collections was taken; and the number of collections, lots, and
specimens) in the LFL Collection Accessions Log (a dBase file, accesslg.dbf, and printed
version thereof), and (3) establishing a file of data and documents associated with that set of
collections. LFL maintains two categories of accessioned collections, cataloged collections
and backlog collections, the latter of which are minimally maintained until they can be
cataloged. The accession number is used to identify the file of collection-related data and set
of collections even after they have been catalogued.

Authority over Specimens-LFL assumes full, unencumbered authority on behalf of the
public for the disposition and use of specimens deposited with or permanently transferred to
the LFL Collection, with the following exceptions. LFL will recognize and accommodate