Newton Abbot Museum specimens unlock secrets of the past

A museum in Devon is set to catalogue about 3,000 specimens collected more than 100 years ago, as part of a new project.

Newton Abbot Museum will digitally share information on a collection of moths, butterflies and other invertebrates to a national database.

It is part of a collaboration with the Natural History Museum.

It aims to help researchers understand more about biodiversity, along with climate and environmental change.

The specimens being catalogued were collected by Dr Henry Mapleton, a medical officer for health with Newton Abbot Urban and District Council from 1890 to 1932.

Dr Charlotte Dixon, a curator at the museum, said: "It's so exciting. A lot of these labels were last put on by Dr Henry Mapleton and we are, for the first time, discovering what information is in there."

Curatorial assistant Lucy Cokes, who joined the Newton Abbot Museum team just a month ago, has been involved in the project.

She said: "I'm really passionate about telling stories about collections. This is really important because it's contributing to a global database."

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