filter_framesUniversity of Michigan Herbarium Algae Type Collection

The University of Michigan Herbarium (MICH) is one of several museum units within the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. It includes over 1.7 million specimens of vascular plants, fungi, lichens, bryophytes, and algae. Of these, 105,000 correspond to algae. This collection is strong in marine algae from New England, Florida, Bermuda, and the West Indies and has good representation from all of eastern North America from Labrador and Newfoundland to Texas. Holdings are good from Central and South American coasts and exceptional from the Galapagos Islands. The Pacific coast of the United States, including Alaska, and of Canada is well represented, as are Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Africa, the Indian Ocean, including Oman, and the Marshall Islands.

This digital collection contains specimen data and digital images of the nearly 900 “type specimens” of algae at MICH. These specimens are particularly valuable, because they are the specimens upon which the scientific name of an organism is based, when an author validates the name of new species or other rank with a description. Separate databases for types of vascular plants and bryophytes at MICH are available at...

• Vascular Plant Type Collection with Specimen Images
• Bryophyte Type Collection
• Fungus and Lichen Type Collection

Support for digitizing and databasing type specimens at MICH has kindly been provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. As of January 2009, nearly 5000 of the vascular plant type specimens have been digitized and are available on this website. The remaining half of the vascular plant types will be added over the course of the year.