We invite you to explore our collections and research programs in Amphibians and Reptiles; Birds; Fishes; Insects, Arachnids, and Myriapods; Invertebrates and Mammals through the divisional web pages.
Vision Statement
The central goals of Field Museum Zoology are:
- To continue as a center of intellectual excellence in specimen-based research on evolutionary biology and biodiversity science
- To lead efforts to document Earth’s biological diversity through collections growth, curation and study
- To share new-found knowledge of the diversity of life, and the processes that shape it, with diverse audiences.
We envision meeting these goals by:
- Conducting vigorous programs of research as evidenced through field and lab-based studies of the natural world resulting in peer-reviewed publications and active participation in conferences and other scientific initiatives.
- Continuing successful curator-driven efforts to obtain competitive funding from the National Science Foundation and other sources for conducting critical research on biodiversity while training a new generation of scientists from around the world through existing and new doctoral and post-doctoral programs.
- Working to improve the research facilities at The Field Museum for state-of-the art science in collaboration with other departments and through strategic planning within our department. Initiatives will include collections databasing, imaging, GIS, and bioinformatics.
- Developing innovations to make collections more accessible and relevant to a global audience through new collections databases, new types of data, new ideas for exhibits, and innovative educational programming.
- Highlighting and continuing to develop the Collections Resource Center and our dry collections areas as world-class centerpieces for collections and research.