Behind the Scenes: The Field Museum’s Mammal Collections Mammal Collections Manager Bill Stanley takes you behind the scenes to show you just what happens to the wide variety of mammal specimens that arrive at The Field Museum each month. Accessed daily by researchers from around the globe, the Museum’s collections are critical to understanding and conserving the world’s mammals. Specimens and data from the collections are used in myriad studies to investigate questions of anatomy, behavior, biogeography, ecology, evolution, genetics, morphology, and systematics, to name just a few. In this expedition, follow the path of various specimens as they go through the preparation process and into the Museum’s collections. Then witness the incredible array of scientific enquiries and educational and conservation programs that depend on these specimens. This website will provide you with a behind-the-scenes tour of the Museum. It may not be for the squeamish -- some of the videos and photographs show various stages of specimen preservation such as cleaning of skeletons. But it is an opportunity for the curious -- you can be there in the prep lab to see what happens. Before you delve into the expedition website, feel free to better familiarize yourself with The Field Museum mammal collections process. Specimen Collection: Tracking Down and Keeping Track Specimen Preparation: Pickling, Stuffing, Boiling, and Bugs Specimen Storage: Housing Our Mammal Library Collections Diversity: Think All Squirrels Look Alike? Think Again Collections Use: At Home, Around the World, and on the Web Special Thanks