THE ROLE OF NATURAL-HISTORY MUSEUMS IN PRESERVING BIODIVERSITY IN SOUTH-AFRICA

Natural history museums and their collections should be regarded as an important component of the environmental conservation network. South Africa is a signatory of the Rio Convention and has an obligation to d evelop strategies for the conservation of biodiversity. A survey was c arried out to determine the role that South African natural history mu seums currently play in the conservation of biodiversity. Several impo rtant aspects were examined: mission statements and goals; the adequac y of the taxonomic work-force to meet South Africa's present and futur e requirements; the computerization of collections; the utilization of corrections for research; and the transfer of information through sci entific publications. The biodiversity crisis offers natural history m useums a unique opportunity to prove their value and draw attention to the urgent need for the establishment of a national biodiversity netw ork. The prioritization of goals and focused education and research pr ogrammes are essential. The existing taxonomic work-force is inadequat e to meet present requirements. This problem must be addressed urgentl y if we are to inventorize our national biodiversity over the next two decades. Coordinated data base development is an essential initial st ep in mobilizing collections for efficient management and conservation . Currently, zoological collections are under-utilized by the research community. Increased use of the collections must be encouraged. The p ublication of scientific papers that use museum collection material ca n help to achieve this, besides benefiting overall scientific knowledg e which is the base of education. Change is inevitable and natural his tory museums: will have to adapt.