Protist collection

Scyphosphaera apsteinii. Scanning Electron Microscope image of an equatorial coccolith.

The Natural History Museum microbiology collection includes extant protozoan protists.

The microbiology collection of extant protozoan protists comprises mainly microscope slides but also small numbers of registered specimens in spirit, embedded in resin (i.e. as transmission electron microscope (TEM) blocks, ultrathin sections), on Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) stubs, as photographic material (35mm slides), or as cryopreserved material in the molecular collection facility.

The Garnham collection comprises of 1,023 slides with representative specimens of over 200 species including malarial parasites and other haemosporidia of mammals, birds and reptiles with a significant number of type specimens.

The Protozoa and ambiregnal groups (e.g. dinoflagellates), are held in the phycology collection of the algae, fungi and plants division.

Important historical collections

E. Penard collection
Perkins collection
F.W. O’Connor collection
J.J. Lister collection
S.M. Marshall collection
McFie Bequest
M.M. Metcalf collection
D. Kellin bequest
J. Kane collection
M. Taylor collection
M. Jepps collection
E.W. Carlier collection
Wallich collection
J.W. Murray collection
A.M. Norman collection
H.B. Brady collection
Bayliss collection
H. Sandon collection
P.C.C. Garnham collection
C.M. Wenyon collection
C. Dobell collection
M.A. Pierce collection
G.M. Findlay collection
C.G. Ogden collection
Wellcome Tropical Institute collection (1987, 1989)

Expeditions

• HMS Challenger (global oceanographic mission 1872-1876)

Looking for a specimen?

This collection is being digitised

Curator

Alan Warren

If you would like to use any specimens for research, please get in touch

Curator

If you would like to use any specimens for research, please get in touch

Specimens (wet)

100

Specimens (slides)

25,000

Collections on the move

Access to some collections will be affected as we prepare for the move to our new collections, science and digitisation centre.

Accessing the collections

Scientists and collections management specialists can visit the collections and borrow specimens for research.

Collections management

Our duty is to provide a safe and secure environment for all of our collections.

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