The Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (MVZ) may accept donations of amphibians, reptiles, birds, bird eggs and nests, mammals for disposition into its collections. Donations may include preserved specimens and/or specimen parts (e.g., tissue samples) as well as unpreserved material (e.g., frozen carcasses, live animals) that will be prepared by Museum Curators or curatorial staff. The Museum also accepts donations of images (digital or printed photographs or slides), sound recordings, field notes, and other natural history archival material. Acceptance of a donation is at the discretion of MVZ Curators.

All specimen-related material donated to the MVZ must be accompanied by copies of permits or other documentation that the material was obtained legally by the donor. In cases where the donation consists of older material that lacks such documentation, the donor must submit a letter to the Museum at the time of the donation that indicates the nature and source of material and that explains the reason for lack of permit documentation. Salvaged material (i.e., specimens found dead) may be donated to the Museum under its institutional state and federal salvage permits.

Ideally, specimens donated to the MVZ should have information on collection locality and geographic coordinates, date, and other relevant data. These data may be in the form of field notes or they may be written directly on specimen tags. We encourage potential donors to contact MVZ curatorial staff for guidelines for recording such data. If a potential donor plans in advance to collect or salvage specimens for disposition into the MVZ collections, he/she may request certain curatorial supplies from the Museum to assist with this work, including specimen tags, tissue vials, and archival field note paper. Occasionally, donors may wish to claim specimen donations as a tax deduction. Museum staff are not responsible for appraising the value of specimen donations for tax or other purposes. In these cases, the donor must submit a letter to the Director indicating the number and kind of specimens donated, their estimated value, and how this appraisal was obtained (e.g., by a certified taxidermist). The Museum then will submit this letter to the U.C. Development Office, who will provide the donor with a receipt.

Once a donation is accessioned into the MVZ collections, the inclusive material and any copyrights become the property of the Regents of the University of California. A Deed of Gift signed by the donor and MVZ transfers all rights to the UC Regents. Accessioning and cataloguing will follow established procedures of the Museum. Donated material and associated data will be made available for research, education, or public exhibit according to the mission and policies of the Museum and Regents, except by prior signed agreement between the donor and the Museum.