Why do we collect and study arthropods? Because they serve as a major repository of data concerning agriculture, public health, ecology, biodiversity, biochemistry and genomics.

The primary purpose of the Arthropod Collection is to provide long-term safe storage facilities for arthropod specimens representing the American Southwest and northern Mexico, with a special emphasis on arthropods from the state of New Mexico. The collections provide researchers with study specimens representing local arthropod taxa, as well as providing researchers with a repository for voucher specimens representing taxa identified from scientific research projects.