The biology museum, opened by Hacettepe University in 2023 to protect the natural biodiversity in Turkey, has over 10,000 specimens, 3,000 of which are insects. The museum has been visited by 65,000 people in 16 months.

The biology museum, opened by Hacettepe University in 2023 to protect the natural biodiversity in Turkey, includes many specimens from fossils millions of years old, geological materials and stones, to microorganisms, plants, fungi and animals. The museum, created by faculty members of Hacettepe University Department of Biology, aims to raise awareness for the protection of genetic diversity, ethnobotany and biological diversity.

In the basement of the museum; mollusks, crustaceans, crabs, insects, butterflies, flies, invertebrates and fossils are located. Plants, fish, reptiles, birds and fungi are on the ground floor. On the top floor, there are small and large mammals, chimpanzees and gorillas. The museum has over 10,000 specimens, 3,000 of which are insects, while the real human cadaver specimen that underwent plastination draws a lot of attention. The museum, located on Hacettepe University Beytepe campus, was visited by 65,000 people in 16 months.

'A SMALL SCALE OF NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM'

Hacettepe University Biodiversity Research Application Center Director, Faculty of Science, Department of Biology Faculty Member Prof. Dr. Selim Süalp Çağlar stated that they are the museum that exhibits the most examples of Turkey's biological diversity and said, "There are 50-60 year old specimens in our museum, maybe even older specimens. Because not all of the specimens belong to us. We ask for these specimens from scientists who conduct studies on these subjects, and they support us. Because it is not possible for one person or one group to have so many specimens. While there are very advanced specimens in some groups, the number of specimens may often be small in some groups depending on the number of people working. For this reason, we collected these specimens from our friends in universities from almost all over Turkey. In addition, we have a cooperation with the Turkish National Botanic Garden. Therefore, we are carrying out close cooperation with the National Botanic Garden in terms of the section where dried plant specimens, which we call herbarium (the place where dried plant specimens are preserved by arranging them in a certain system), are located. Again, we also have collections that we have received from scientists working on these subjects, that we have published with their names, or that we keep their names in our scientific laboratories. We called this place a biodiversity museum, but it is actually a smaller scale of a natural history museum. When we say natural history museum, we mean a museum that contains geological and biological materials."

'WE HAVE FOSSIL SPECIMENS OVER 20 MILLION YEARS OLD'

Explaining that geological materials exhibited under the supervision of geology curators are also exhibited in the museum, Prof. Dr. Çağlar said, "In addition, there are examples related to ethnobotany, including the use of materials produced by animals such as beeswax. In this regard, we receive support from faculty members of our university's faculty of pharmacy, especially in the ethnobotany section. We are trying to exhibit examples of all groups in this museum, in a sequence from the simplest to the most advanced. 90 percent of these are specimens belonging to our country. There are also around 10 percent of specimens brought from outside our country. Biodiversity is a concept that refers to the diversity at every layer of life. Biodiversity actually consists of three essential pillars; one of these is the diversity of species, the other is the diversity of genes and the diversity of ecosystems. Therefore, you can see all of these in the museum. We can say that the biological materials collected in our museum are 50-60-70 years old. But fossil specimens vary; we also have fossil specimens from the 17-20 million year old period, and we also have fossil specimens that are over 20 million years old. We have 350 million year old carbon samples, coal samples. We have a stromatolite sample that is older than that, around 2 billion years old or even higher."

'KEPT USING TECHNIQUES THAT VARY ACCORDING TO LIVE GROUPS'

Professor Çağlar, who stated that there are also taxidermied (a series of processes to prevent the corpse from decaying), specially stuffed animals in the museum, said, "We do not kill these animals in any way for the purpose of exhibiting them here. These are animals collected for scientific purposes. They are stuffed by taxidermists and we obtain these specimens from them. Animals other than large mammals are collected as scientific material. To preserve these specimens, we especially pass aquatic ones such as fish, especially invertebrates, through a liquid containing the chemical formaldehyde. Because this chemical prevents the organism from decaying. In other words, it fixes the water in its tissues (prevents it from decaying). Therefore, the tissue hardens and the water disappears. Then we take them and put them in alcohols and preserve them that way. We change all of these periodically. But apart from that, for example, there are some animals, like small mammals, whose insides are cleaned and their skins can be preserved. We fill some of them or taxidermy is performed, as in birds. After insects die, they are stretched using various stretching techniques appropriate to their own morphology in order to preserve them. In short, they are preserved and exhibited using techniques that vary according to living groups. Plants, on the other hand, are dried; after being collected from the field, they are preserved and stored by placing them between two plates called 'press' with newspapers in between in such a way that their appropriate forms, namely flowers, fruits, seeds, roots, and leaves, can be seen properly," he said.

'CAN BE VISITED FREE OF CHARGE'

Professor Çağlar stated that they are a museum affiliated with the General Directorate of Museums and Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Department of Private Museums, and said, "We have been open for 22 months, and we have been keeping entrance records for the museum for 16 months. We can say that 65 thousand visitors have come in 16 months. The museum can be visited free of charge and is only open four days a week; from Tuesday to Friday," he said.

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