Price Institute of Parasite Research, School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah (UTAH-PIPR)

The Price Institute for Parasite Research (PIPR) is largely focused on the study of ectoparasitic insects (but we also work on vertebrate endoparasites, including avian malaria). The centerpiece of PIPR is a collection of 1200+ species of slide-mounted lice, representing about two thirds of the 301 recognized genera, making it the fourth most diverse collection in North America (top 10 worldwide). The collection is invaluable because of the consistent quality of its specimens, most of which were prepared by Dr. Roger Price, a leading authority on the systematics of lice. PIPR also contains an extensive collection of 40,000+ slides of fleas and lice assembled by the late Robert Elbel. It houses equipment for microscopy and the creation and analysis of digital images. This facility, in conjunction with the University's SEM unit, allows for rapid recording of morphometric data on a variety of scales. PIPR has facilities for preparing new slide-mounts and remounting slides. It houses one of the largest frozen ectoparasite tissue collections in the world, consisting of 7,000+ specimens from 250+ host species. PIPR also has an associated molecular lab with full capabilities for DNA extraction, PCR, and the preparation of material for the University of Utah's central automated sequencing facility. PIPR will serve as a base for research and training in ectoparasitology well into the new century. • 25,000 slides of lice (Phthiraptera) • 17,000 slides of fleas (Siphonaptera) • Additional ectoparasite specimens include: mites, ticks, flies, and helminths, but these are not yet catalogued.

Contact: Sarah Bush (bush@biology.utah.edu)

Home Page: http://darwin.biology.utah.edu/PIPeRX.html

Collection Type: Preserved Specimens

Management: Live Data managed directly within data portal

Global Unique Identifier: 028fdfa8-3d4b-4c1f-ab67-4cd41e01e213

DwC-Archive Publishing: https://scan-bugs.org:443/portal/collections/datasets/datapublisher.php

Live Data Download: Login for access

Digital Metadata: EML File

Usage Rights: CC BY-NC 4.0 (Attribution-Non-Commercial International)

Rights Holder: Sarah E. Bush, Curator PIPR collection

• 20,082 occurrence
• 1,800 (9%) georeferenced
• 14,456 (72%) with images
• 6,908 (34%) identified to species
• 22 families
• 188 genera
• 949 species
• 990 total taxa (including subsp. and var.)