Dr. Peter Giere
Scientist / (Senior) Scientist
Sub-collection
Embryology
The Embryology sub-collection brings together rare vertebrate embryos, histological specimens and scientific archives of international significance. It provides an essential resource for research on the evolution, development and diversity of vertebrates.
Overview
The Embryology sub-collecton is one of the world's largest and most taxonomically diverse collections dedicated to comparative embryology. Its focus is on vertebrates, with particularly extensive holdings of higher mammals, including whales and primates, as well as monotremes (Monotremata) and marsupials (Marsupialia). Many of these historical specimens could no longer be collected today. The sub-collection is complemented by fishes, amphibians and reptiles.
The sub-collection comprises developmental stages of around 600 vertebrate species, preserved in approximately 3,000 wet-preservation jars, as well as around 290,000 histological preparations, including approximately 80,000 sections of vertebrate embryos and reproductive organs. Particularly valuable holdings include embryos of whales, primates, monotremes and marsupials, as well as rare specimens of an aardvark and the extinct thylacine.
The sub-collection also includes a specialised library containing historical and contemporary literature, together with extensive archival resources on vertebrate embryology. Among the most frequently consulted materials are the historical Normal Plates produced during the first decades of the twentieth century.
Access
The sub-collection is available for scientific research by prior arrangement with the Scientific Head of Collection.
Collection data are being digitised continuously. Digital image data from computed tomography and surface scans are available through Open Access and linked to the corresponding scientific publications, enabling many research questions to be addressed non-destructively.
Contact
History
The foundations of the sub-collection were laid at the end of the nineteenth century by the Dutch embryologist Ambrosius Hubrecht (1853–1915). Through numerous scientific estates and acquisitions, it quickly developed into one of the world's leading embryological collections. Major components include the work of James P. Hill (1873–1954) and Theodore T. Flynn (1883–1968) on Australian mammals, Carl A. Dohrn (1806–1892) on fishes, Emil Selenka (1842–1902) on primates, Willy Kükenthal (1861–1922) on whales, and Louis Bolk (1866–1930) on vertebrates.
Of outstanding significance for the history of science are the experimental specimens of Hilde Mangold (1898–1924), Hans Spemann (1869–1941) and Hans Grüneberg (1907–1982). The histological preparations and original research records documenting the experiments that led to the discovery of the embryonic organiser effect – and ultimately to Hans Spemann's 1935 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine – are still preserved in the sub-collection.
In addition to zoological specimens, historical catalogues, correspondence and archival documents record the development of both the sub-collection and embryological research. Particularly remarkable are the richly illustrated original catalogues of the Hubrecht Collection, featuring detailed pencil drawings of the embryos studied.
Research
Researchers from Europe, North America and Australia make regular use of the sub-collection. It provides an important resource for studies in morphology, evolutionary biology and developmental biology.
At the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, the Embryology research group investigates vertebrate evolution by combining fossil evidence, embryonic development, the morphology of living species and genetic data. Current projects focus, for example, on the evolution of limb regeneration in salamanders, as well as the early evolution of synapsids and the effects of the end-Permian mass extinction on terrestrial ecosystems.
The historical specimens continue to support contemporary research. One notable example is a specimen of a short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) carrying an egg in its brood pouch, which provides exceptional insight into monotreme reproduction and has long served as an important teaching and research specimen.