File photo \/ Samarie Goffney<\/a><\/p>\nThe annual Night at the Museum tour of the Amphibian and Reptile Diversity Research Center will feature reptile and amphibian specimens at 6 p.m. Thursday. <\/p>\n
Hosted by UTA\u2019s Herpetology Club in collaboration with the research center, the event will give students a look at the various specimens housed in the center. The research center has more than 200,000 specimens from about 90 countries, making it one of the largest collections in Texas, according to its website. <\/p>\n
The tour will last about two hours and will be capped at thirty people due to limited space inside the museum, said Greg Pandelis, collections manager and biological curator for the center and Herpetology Club adviser. If more attendees come, he said they might split the tours. <\/p>\n
Pandelis said the event will open the research center to the public for a tour of the museum. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe goal is to show folks why it\u2019s important to have these research museums,\u201d Pandelis said. <\/p>\n
Herpetology Club President Waylon Shinn said the event will allow students to see a glimpse into the world of herpetology, from preserved sea turtles to larger specimens like crocodiles. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe have some very, very unique specimens that the public doesn\u2019t usually get to see,\u201d Shinn said. <\/p>\n
The center and its specimens are a \u201chidden gem\u201d not many students know about, he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a resource that students are able to take advantage of if they want to do research, if they want to get involved in science,\u201d Shinn said. <\/p>\n
Pandelis said people might be surprised by the active research conducted at the center and the knowledge gained from the preserved specimens. <\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone thinks it\u2019s cool to see an interesting snake or Komodo dragon,\u201d he said. \u201cBut the amount of active knowledge that we gain from these specimens and the number of scientific publications that are constantly coming out using the specimens is something that I think surprises people.\u201d <\/p>\n
@atclements03<\/p>\n
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