REPORT OF THE DXBECTOR. 



Albany, December 23, 1882. 

 To Hie Honorable the Board of Regents of the University of the State 

 of New York : 



Gentlemen — I have the honor to communicate herewith the An- 

 nual Report upon the State Museum of Natural History, with some 

 general account of the condition of the collections in the several de- 

 partments, the additions which have been made thereto, and the work 

 done in the institution during the past year. 



The collections of the State Museum are all in good order and con- 

 dition; and, so far as our facilities permit, are arranged for exhibition 

 to the public. It is, however, impossible to extend these facilities 

 very greatly for want of space in the building. Some additional table 

 cases have been added during the past year, taking the place of a 

 small working-room which had been separated from one of the public 

 halls. 



During the past month the collections of birds, mammals and skele- 

 tons have been removed and carefully cleaned and examined, and re- 

 placed in their cases in good order. That portion of the ethnological 

 collection upon the same floor has likewise received careful attention 

 and the perishable portions have been treated in the same manner as 

 the stuffed skins of birds, etc., in order to insure their preservation. 



All the alcqholic collections have likewise been examined and put 

 in proper order. The small collections of Radiates and Echinoderms 

 have been examined and rearranged in the cases, with additional speci- 

 mens of corals obtained during the past year. The work of dusting 

 and cleaning the conchological collection is now in progress, and this 

 will be followed by the cleaning and rearrangement of the minera- 

 logical collection. 



It has been impossible to accomplish the proposed plan of present- 

 ing a systematic catalogue of the birds and mammals of the State, as 

 intended ; this work is, however, only deferred to a more favorable 

 opportunity. 



A catalogue of the Unionidae of the several collectiows in the State 

 [Sen. Doc. No. 53. J 2 



