World Holdings of Avian Tissues from Panama

The avifauna of Panama may be better documented than that of any other country in Central America. Museum expeditions over the past 100 years have yielded a wealth of traditional specimens and an excellent understanding of bird distribution and occurrence across the country. Unfortunately, most of these expeditions were mounted in the first half of the century well before the importance of preserving tissue samples had been realised. Consequently, the world holdings of avian tissue from Panama are grossly inadequate. A compilation of the world holdings of avian tissue from Panama is presented which illustrates the need for continued general collecting throughout Panama. Recent contributions made during a recent field visit to the upper Río Chagres basin in 2002 are listed and guidance provided about where future collecting is needed.