Digital Data in Biodiversity Research Conference

Natural history collections offer necessary, but underutilized, infrastructure for monitoring and addressing emerging disease threats. For example, the extended specimen captures not only host responses to pathogen infection, but also the potential role of ectoparasites in transmitting a pathogen, and the impact of beneficial microorganisms on infection success in both host and ectoparasite vector. Through associated sample metadata, we can examine how these nested communities of interacting hosts, ectoparasites, and microorganisms respond to habitat loss or geographic distance. We can additionally apply advanced sequencing technologies and protocols developed for ancient samples to the historical holdings of museums to understand how host-pathogen dynamics have changed through time. While these collections offer obvious value toward building resiliency to zoonoses, we can also improve the ways natural history museums sample, document, and share components of the extended specimen. By enhancing collections that specialize on parasites, pathogens, or microorganisms, we also build the power of natural history collections to address pressing zoonotic threats. This type of holistic, relationship-based approach will allow biodiversity and public health researchers to better leverage natural history collections toward the goals of interdisciplinary collaboration, open science, pathogen surveillance, and zoonotic resilience.