| Name | Permanent exhibition of non-arthropod invertebrates |
| Alternative name | MCNB. Col. permanent exhibition non-arthropod invertebrates |
| Cite as | Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona (MCNB). Permanent exhibition of non-arthropod invertebrates MCNB. Col. permanent exhibition non-arthropod invertebrates |
| Description | This collection contains specimens from the Non-Arthropod Invertebrate collection that is part of the Planeta Vida permanent exhibition of the Museu Blau. The invertebrate specimens selected illustrate various themes such as diversity, environmental adaptation, evolution, nomenclature and classification, in both the main exhibition and the thematic side events known as Science Islands. The collection consists of whole organisms, shells, and invertebrate skeletons, colonies and eggs, preserved as dry and wet specimens in 70% ethanol. In all, there are 470 specimens corresponding to 183 lots and 128 species, of which most belong to the phylum Mollusca (75% of lots). The phylums Cnidaria, Porifera, Echinodermata, Annelida and Brachiopoda (in descending numerical order) complete the invertebrate non-arthropods on display. Included in the collection are specimens from historical collections (e.g. Francesc Martorell founder collection and the collections of Artur Bofill, Joan Baptista d'Aguilar-Amat, Joan Rosals, Manuel de Chía and Baltasar Serradell, and from the Naples Zoological Station and Santander Marine Biology Station), as well as more recent collections such as those of Luis Gasull, Joan Rosal and Miquel Bech. Wide-ranging geographical cover in both the terrestrial and marine sections, extending from the Mediterranean (mainly the coastal areas of Catalonia and the Balearic Islands) to the lands and oceans of the planet’s remaining continents. The whole collection has been registered, documented and digitalized to specimen lot level. Data from a part of the collection can be consulted on-line at the website of the Barcelona Natural History Museum and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility website. |
| Provenance | The current exhibition in the Museu Blau (opened in 2011) is built upon a selection of non-arthropod invertebrates from the Museum’s former permanent exhibition (in the Castle of the Three Dragons) and from other elements of its collections that had never previously been put on display. The oldest specimens originate from the shell collection of Francesc Martorell, part of the founder collection of the Martorell Museum (1879). As well, there is material from other historical collections incorporated into the Museum’s collections at later dates, including those of Joan Baptista d'Aguilar-Amat, Artur Bofill, Joan Rosals, Manuel de Chía, Baltasar Serradell and the Jaume Balmes Institute. The oldest wet specimens are part of the collection of the Oceanographic Section organized at the beginning of 1917 with material from the Naples Zoological Station and the Santander Marine Biology Station. Other samples include donations by collectors and other sources associated with the Museum. Of note amongst the most recent donations are the specimens originating from the collections of Luis Gasull (donated in 1983), Joan Rosal (2000) and Miquel Bech (2009). Francesc Uribe has been the curator of the Department of Non-Arthropod Invertebrates since 1997 and since then the inventory and digitalization of the Museum’s whole collection has been carried out to specimen lot level. |
