The Museum of Vertebrate Zoology provides loans of skins, skeletons, and fluid-preserved specimens from its collections for scientific research. Bird eggs and nests, and bird and mammal type specimens, are not loaned. Loans of type specimens of amphibians and reptiles are made only in special instances. Researchers interested in tissues or destructive sampling should read those policies carefully before making a request.

Specimen loans are made only to faculty, curators, and permanent research staff at recognized institutions with facilities to properly house and care for specimens. Individuals who are not affiliated with such an institution may request a loan of material only if they have made prior arrangements with an appropriate person for housing of specimens, and if that person agrees in writing to receive the specimens on the researcher's behalf.

All requests (1) must be made in writing, (2) should include a brief description of the proposed use of the material, and (3) must be approved by an MVZ Curator. Loans for use by graduate students or postdocs must be co-signed by the individual's major advisor. Invasive procedures are not permitted without expressed written permission.

If permission is granted to remove specimen parts, e.g., reproductive organs or stomach contents, those parts must be labeled with the MVZ catalogue number by the researcher and returned with the specimens. Any slide preparations, e.g., SEM stubs, histological, karyological, are to be returned properly labeled. Removal of hair or skin samples for molecular analyses are considered invasive procedures and written permission must be obtained in advance (see policy relating to tissue/DNA grants).

The borrower must sign and return a copy of the loan invoice to acknowledge safe receipt of specimens. Specimen damage that occurs during transit should be reported immediately. The borrower is liable for damage that occurs during handling of specimens.

Loans are generally made for a period of six months. Requests for loan extensions, and for permission to transfer specimens from one institution to another, must be made in writing.

When specimens are returned to the MVZ, they should be shipped in the same container, using the same carrier, and insured for the same value as they were originally sent. Unless otherwise requested, domestic loans will be shipped via UPS Ground (UPS Air for Alaska and Hawaii) and international loans will be sent via Federal Express. All FedEx loans will be charged to the borrower, who must provide a recharge number at the time of the request.

For foreign loans, the borrower also is responsible for providing copies of all relevant import and export permits. If permits are not necessary, that should be stated in writing at the time of the request. Loans to countries where commercial delivery services are unreliable will be granted only when specimens can be hand-carried in both directions.

In the case of re-identification of specimens, the new designations should be provided to MVZ curatorial staff when specimens are returned to the Museum. These data can be provided on a copy of the original loan invoice, or in a separate list that contains the MVZ catalog numbers and respective new identifications (either in text or spreadsheet format).

The Museum has a standard moratorium on shipping loans during the month of December.

The Museum should be acknowledged in any publications that result from the use of its specimens. Acknowledgement should be given as "Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley." Two reprints of each publication should be sent to the Museum c/o either Dr. Christopher Conroy or Dr. Carla Cicero.