The National Natural History Collections at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem are the most extensive biological collections of the Middle East. 

 

In addition to serving as a physical documentary of the regional natural history, the collections provide research material for studies in evolution, ecology, taxonomy, systematics, biodiversity, nature conservation, agriculture, wildlife forensics, history, and more. 

 

The National Natural History Collections are involved in academic and public education and teaching activities, and provide consultation services to national organizations (the Nature & Parks Authority, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Ministry of Health, and others) and to the general public. 

 

The National Natural History Collections include twelve collections of different types: geology (mineralogy), bio-anthropology, archaeozoology, paleontology, paleobotany, botany (herbarium), ornithology (birds), herpetology (reptiles & amphibians), ichthyology (fish), fungi, aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, and wildlife tissues. 

 

All in all, the collections house more than eight million items, among these ca. 7,600 type specimens (holotypes) of various taxa. Nonetheless, new species are still being discovered and described as an ongoing component of the scientific work in the collections.