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Diatom collections

Darkfield light micrograph of live Skeletonema costatum and Melosira nummoloides,

Darkfield light micrograph of live Skeletonema costatum and Melosira nummoloides,diatoms collected in Herdlefjorden, western Norway.  Dr. Per R. Flood of Bathybiologica A/S, Norway

The Museum's diatom collection is one of the largest in the world, containing over 300,000 specimens accumulated from the early nineteenth century to the present day.

  • Specimens

    • 300,000

  • Type specimens

    • 10,000

  • Species

    • 20,000

Strengths

The collections are a crucial resource for modern research, diatom specimens are used to answer scientific questions about areas as diverse as climate change and phylogenetic relationships.

The collections are extremely geographically and taxonomically diverse. They are an internationally recognised type specimen repository, containing representatives from freshwater, brackish and marine environments.

All major diatom groups, both fossil and recent, are represented.

The comprehensive assortment of fossil specimens, includes one of the best representations of Cretaceous diatoms.

  • Type specimens

    • Estimated 10,000
    • Confirmed 5,000

  • Material type

    • Microscope slides collections 150,000
    • Bottle collection 35,000
    • Herbarium sheets 7,500
    • Diatomite (rocks and sediments) 1,500

Other resources

    • SEM stubs
    • Non-permanent strews
    • LM micrographs
    • SEM images
    • Handwritten notes
    • Letters
    • Sketches and drawings
    • Index card files

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The diatom collection is being digitised

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Curator

Edgley Cesar

Any questions ?

If you would like to use any specimens for research, please get in touch

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Collections on the move

We have set out on an ambitious programme to develop a new science and digitisation centre at Harwell Campus in Oxfordshire by 2026. As we prepare for the move, access to some collections will be affected.

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Major collections

The Museum's diatom collection has a large number of historical and recent specimens and accompanying materials amassed by British and foreign diatomists as well as a variety of published diatoms exsiccate sets. 

Important collectors

  • Robert K.aye Greville (1794-1866)
  • William Gregory (1803-1858)
  • Friedrich T.raugott Kützing (1807-1893)
  • William Smith (1853-1856)
  • Edmund Grove (1823-1911)
  • Gerald Sturt (1860-1947)
  • Frederic Kitton (1827-18951885)
  • John Ralfs (1807-1890)
  • Julien Marc Deby (1826-1895
  • Eugene O’Meara (1815-1880)
  • Freeman C. S. Roper (1819-1896)
  • Bernard Hartley (1917-2007)
  • William A. Firth (1853-1923)
  • George H. K. Thwaites (1812-1882)
  • John R. Carter (1908-1993)
  • Norman I. Hendey (1903-2004)
  • Robert Ross (1912-2005)
  • Eileen J. Cox
  • Thomas B. B. Paddock
  • David M. Williams
  • Patricia A. Sims

  • Scanning electron microscope image (coloured artificially by computer) showing the diatom Amphitetras with its ornate silica shell.

  • Photograph of a diatom specimen found off the coast of Hong Kong. Diatoms are abundant in marine ecosystems.

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    Scanning electron microscope image of a fossil marine diatom showing the ornate silica shell

  • Scanning electron microscope image of a diatom showing the ornate silica shell

  • Scanning electron microscope image of a fossil marine diatom showing the ornate silica shell

Other important collections 

  • Tempére & Peragallo: (Diatomeés du Monde Entier, 1st and 2nd editions).
  • Cleve & Möller: (Diatoms, 1877-1882).
  • H. L. Smith: (Diatomacearum Species Typicae, 1876-1888).
  • G. L. Rabenhorst: (Die Algen Sachsens, 1848-1860; Die Bacillarien Sachsens. Ein Beitrag zur Fauna von Sachsen, 1849-1852).
  • Hamilton, Poulin, Charles & Angell: (Americanarum Diatomarum Exsiccate, 1992-1994).
  • A. Tuji: (Algae Aquae Dulcis Japonicae Exsiccatae, 2007-2016).

Country of origin

Collections are geographically diverse. Parts of the slide collection are assembled from particular geographic localities or expeditions:

  • Russia (Lake Baikal in Siberia)
  • Indonesia (Lake Toba, Sumatra)
  • Jamaica
  • Philippines

Accessing the collections

Scientists and collections management specialists can visit the collections and borrow specimens for research.

Collections management

Our duty is to provide a safe and secure environment for all of our collections.