The value of the bird collections and associated data in regional museums: Lanius excubitor specimens in Sarisske Museum, Bardejov, Slovakia

摘要

Current ornithology, when working on long-term studies of the ecology and conservation of bird species, faces the problem of how to obtain relevant data. This challenge is particularly acute in the case of rare or uncommon species. The importance ofmuseum collections of all sizes, and aspects of the use of collections for such studies, are the subject of this paper. The Department of Natural History, Sarisske Museum, Bardejov, Slovakia, holds the most extensive collection of Great Grey Shrikes in the world, totalling 665 skin and mount specimens, 600 sterna complexes, 207 ectoparasite samples, 7 endoparasite samples, 132 stomach contents and 9 clutches from north-eastern Slovakia, taken in the period 1956-1983.