Willard Sherman Turrell Herbarium
The Willard Sherman Turrell Herbarium (MU) is a broad collection, both taxonomically and geographically. Holdings include specimens of vascular plants, mosses, fungi, and algae, along with our special collections of type specimens, plant fossils, wood collection, and a microscope slide collection of wood sections, stem sections, root sections, and pollen. Active exchange programs are ongoing with many herbaria worldwide to ensure the continued breadth and depth of the collection.
What is an "Herbarium"?
An Herbarium is an archive of pressed and dried specimens that allow students, researchers, and citizens to observe and study the broad diversity of the plant kingdom often on a global scale and without leaving campus. Though it may look like a dry gray cabinet on the outside, the inside is a treasure of plant material collected from some of the most remote places in the world. We have cones from sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana), that produce the largest cones in North America and tiny alpine plants from Iryan Jaya in the Philippines. We have collections of subtle membranous algae and blue fungi as well as 99% of Ohio vascular flora.
Come visit us! We’re in 79 Upham Hall (south wing across from the Hefner Museum), west of the Bishop Woods, Oxford Campus, Miami University
What’s Happening Here?
Our on-going routine activities in the Herbarium include;
Digitally imaging these specimens to make the available via our (upcoming) search engine
Filing specimens in our collection room of 3 floors and 300 cabinets, and
Transcribing label data (Name, Habitat, Collection information) into our database
Projects
Meet Our Director
Li Zheng, Director and Assistant Professor of Biology
Li studies eukaryotic genome evolution and how it impacts phenotypic evolution and generates biodiversity. He is interested in using plants and insects as study systems to understand evolutionary processes, especially gene and genome duplication, chromosomal evolution, and horizontal gene transfer. His ongoing and future research aims are to investigate (1) the genomic basis of evolutionary innovations; (2) the processes of duplicate gene retention and loss; and (3) Why genome duplication is rarer in animals relative to plants.
Upcoming Events
Throughout the year, the Herbarium host outreach activities on topics of interest to students as well as the university and local communities. Stay tuned for times and locations of workshops, tours and special exhibits. If you are interested in learning more about the collection, volunteering or making a financial contribution please see our ‘Support Us!’ page.
Work with Us
Several student Herbarium Assistants are employed each semester to assist with routine activities and grant funded projects. While working they learn about museum curation techniques, plant taxonomy, and data management, all of which transfer directly to many fields of study.
Other Places of Interest
There are many exciting places to see at MU. Check out one of these during your visit.
Contact the Herbarium
Physical Address:
Upham Hall 79100 Bishop Circle
Miami University
Oxford, Ohio
Mailing Address:
212 Pearson Hall
700 High St.
Miami University
Oxford, Ohio 45056
Emeritus Curator, Michael Vincent, Ph.D.
