Angelo State’s Massive Collection of Wildlife Specimens Opens to Public for First Time Since 2020

SAN ANGELO, TX - Angelo State University's Department of Biology will host the first Open House for the Angelo State Natural History Collections (ASNHC) since 2020 on Tuesday, Feb. 18, in the Cavness Science Building at 2460 Dena Drive.

Activities will run from 5-8 p.m. in the main lobby of the Cavness Building and throughout the ASNHC and are free and open to the public. At 6 p.m., Dr. Michael Dixon, curator of the Herpetology Collection, will give a presentation titled "The Curious Complexity of Frogs: Things Your Elementary Science Teacher Forgot to Tell You." Other kid-friendly activities, interactive booths staffed by the ASNHC curators, and light refreshments will also be offered.

In conjunction with the Open House, the ASNHC is conducting its first online auction fundraiser, featuring original illustrations by the late Dr. Terry C. Maxwell, former long-time curator of the Birds Collection, and ASU biology student Adina Hernandez. The ASNHC Silent Auction is now open and will remain open until the end of the Open House. The illustrations will also be on display during the Open House for attendees to view.

Dixon, the speaker for the evening, has been an ASU faculty member since 2003. As curator of the Herpetology Collection, he oversees more than 15,000 specimens of amphibians and reptiles. Known for his innovative teaching techniques, he has earned the ASU President's Award for Faculty Excellence in Teaching, and he has also led several groups of students on biology study abroad trips to Central America and Europe. He holds a Ph.D. in zoology from the University of Texas.

The ASNHC contains more than 100,000 specimens of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds and plants from the Concho Valley, other regions of Texas, many other states, Mexico, Africa, Asia, Australia and even the Galapagos Islands. The collections aid student and faculty research projects, are used as teaching tools, and are viewed by hundreds of K-12 students every year through various educational outreach efforts.