Marine Biological Reference Collections

The Marine Biological Reference Collections (CBMR) originated in 1975, forming a catalogued repository of marine specimens that serves as a reference for published scientific research and for addressing future studies and research questions. The collections house specimens of high ecological and taxonomic value, mostly obtained from oceanographic cruises and other research projects carried out by the ICM, as well as by other national and international marine research institutions and through various collaborations.

The main function of the CBMR is the conservation of past, present, and future marine biodiversity. They provide access to specimens and their associated scientific data to research staff affiliated with national and international research institutions. The CBMR support current research in biodiversity, the discovery and description of new species, taxonomy, phylogeny, genetics, climate change, invasive and exotic species, and geographic distribution.

At present, the CBMR safeguard nearly 40,000 catalogued records of marine specimens, representing more than 2,350 different species, of which 430 are Type specimens (including 60 holotypes), making it the largest exclusively marine scientific collection in Spain. The specimens belong to the kingdoms Animalia, Fungi, Chromista, Protista, and Plantae (rhodoliths). The most represented marine groups in the CBMR are fishes, crustaceans, molluscs, and echinoderms, although cnidarians, annelids, nemerteans, and sipunculids are also present. In addition, there is an emerging collection of tissue samples for molecular analyses. The CBMR constitute a reference for Mediterranean Sea biodiversity, while also hosting a broad diversity of specimens from all five oceans of the planet.

The CBMR are organised into three sub-collections:

• CBMR-General: 
  An open collection including all marine biodiversity groups within the CBMR, with nearly 16,000 catalogued records. Available at THIS LINK
• CBMR-Zariquiey: 
  A closed collection of decapod arthropods, legacy of Dr. Ricardo Zariquiey Álvarez (1897–1965), with more than 14,000 catalogued records. Available at THIS LINK
• CBMR-AFORO: 
  An open collection and catalogue of otoliths from bony fishes associated with the online AFORO database, with more than 8,000 catalogued records. Available at THIS LINK and THIS LINK

The CBMR collaborate with and publish their databases openly through the international biodiversity portal GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility), FishBase (Global Information System on Fishes), and OsteoBase (Web interactive exploration for osteology). They are integrated into the European research infrastructure DiSSCo (Distributed System of Scientific Collections), which brings together all natural science collections and was approved in the ESFRI Roadmap 2021. In addition, they are part of the Network of Natural Science Museums of Catalonia and are co-creators and members of the Spanish Network of Marine Collections (Red CoMarEs).

Services offered by the CBMR:
For any service, please first send an email to cbmr@icm.csic.es

• Deposit and curation of marine specimens and marine Type specimens.
• On-site consultation of specimens.
• Online consultation of specimen images (CBMR-AFORO Collection only).
• Loan of specimens.
• Access to scientific data associated with specimens.
• Request for samples for molecular analyses.
• Collaboration in research projects.
• Taxonomic consultancy (panel of experts in taxonomic identification of marine organisms).