Specify simplifies the process of managing a natural history collection

A biological collection management system is a database that contains records of specimens in a natural history collection and a set of software programs that work with the specimen information. A collections database also includes supporting data, such as descriptions of collecting locations, participants, taxonomic information about specimens and various key dates.

Specify was developed with funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation and the University of Kansas as a  versatile collection management system for zoological museums and herbaria. Specify and its predecessor,  MUSE, have received continuous NSF funding since 1987. Collaborating institutions use Specify without license fee and the Specify code is licensed under the General Public License. By adopting Specify, an institution saves the significant cost of developing, updating, and maintaining their own collection management software.

Specify is a versatile data management system with a customizable, form-based interface. The Specify database is designed to assure high-quality data, reduce duplication and simplify data entry. For example, a user only has to enter information about a location once, and the location data automatically apply to all events and specimens that reference the location. Similarly, information about a person only has to be entered once, and that personal reference can then be associated with various events, specimens, permits, and other roles in collections based research.

Because the Specify user interface is fully customizable, Specify is never more complicated than you need it to be. You can adapt Specify forms to display only the fields you need and arrange those fields in a way that is most efficient for your practices.  Specify also has language customization, all of Specify's Windows user interface: menus, popup messages, field names and of course the data, can be represented in any Western European character set.

Specify supports queries such as:

• List all specimens in my collection of the species X that were obtained at a specific location, province or country.
• Find the records of all specimens in skeleton form that belong to the genus Y, that have been annotated by Dr. Z.
• Show all specimens collected by Dr. Z in 1998 in countries A, B and C.
• Identify all my overdue loans, rank them by date overdue and then list all of the specimens involved in each.

A Specify search form--from the Monte L. Bean Museum at Brigham Young University.

The Specify taxon dictionary is fully compatible with the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) and other popular taxonomy formats. You can import an ITIS-based taxonomy tree into Specify. Once the taxonomy tree is in the Specify database, you can select any taxon from a dropdown menu. Specify will soon be available with a DiGIR provider interface, which means that Specify databases will be able to participate in multiple-collection searches made possible through BRC’s DiGIR protocol and DiGIR-supported community portals, such as MANIS, GBIF, HerpNET, and ORNIS.

The Specify Collection Management System is available at no charge from BRC Informatics. BRC also provides free data migration, form customization, and report writing services for participating institutions.