Unlike many countries, Switzerland does not have a single centralised natural history collection. Owing to its federal system, collections are instead distributed across natural history institutions throughout the country, including natural history museums, botanical gardens, universities and cantonal departments. These institutions curate, manage and database their collections and regularly upload specimen data to national data nodes. They are the data providers.
Building upon this foundational layer, three key associations contribute to data management and coordination, at both national and international levels:
- The Swiss Information Center for Species (InfoSpecies)
- The Association of Natural History Museums and Collections of Switzerland and Liechtenstein (musnatcoll.ch)
- The Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT).
Data Providers
| Canton | Institutions |
|---|---|
| AG | Naturama Aargau (NAAG) |
| BE | Herbarium of the Botanical Garden of the University of Bern (BERN) ; Naturhistorisches Museum der Burgergemeinde Bern (NMBE) |
| BL | Archäologie und Museum Baselland - Museum.BL (AMBL) |
| BS | Naturhistorisches Museum Basel (NMB) ; Universität Basel, Departement Umweltwissenschaften (UNIBAS:DUW) ; Universität Basel, Herbarium (UNIBAS:HERBARIA) ; Universität Basel, Interkantonale Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Anthropologie (UNIBAS:IPNA) |
| FR | Musée d'histoire naturelle Fribourg (MHNF) |
| GE | Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de Genève (CJBG) ; Muséum d’histoire naturelle de Genève (MHNG) |
| GL | Naturwissenschaftliche Sammlungen des Kantons Glarus (NWSGL) |
| GR | Bündner Naturmuseum, Chur (BNM) |
| JU | Jurassica Museum (MJSN) |
| LU | Museum Luzern (MULU) |
| NE | Muséum d'histoire naturelle de Neuchâtel (MHNN) ; MUZOO - Musée d'histoire naturelle de La Chaux-de-Fonds (MUZOO) ; Université de Neuchâtel, Herbarium (UNINE:NEU) |
| SG | Naturmuseum St. Gallen (NMSG) |
| SH | Museum zu Allerheiligen Schaffhausen (NMSH) |
| SO | Naturmuseum Olten (NMOL) ; Naturmuseum Solothurn (NMSO) |
| TI | Museo cantonale di storia naturale, Lugano (MCSN) |
| TG | Naturmuseum Thurgau (NMTG) |
| VD | Muséum cantonal des sciences naturelles, Lausanne, Département de Botanique (NATUREUM:DB), de Géologie (NATUREUM:DG) et de Zoologie (NATUREUM:DZ) |
| VS | Musée de la nature du Valais (MNVS) |
| UR | Naturkundliche Sammlung Uri (NSUR) |
| ZH | Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETHZ) ; Kulturama Museum des Menschen Zürich (KMDMZ) ; Universität Zürich, Naturhistorisches Museum (UZH:NMZ) ; Naturmuseum Winterthur (NMWIN) ; Universität Zürich, Herbarium (UZH:Z) ; Universität Zürich, Institute of Evolutionary Medicine (UZH:IEM) |
Data Management and Coordination Associations
InfoSpecies
The Swiss Information Center for Species (InfoSpecies) serves as an umbrella organization for national data and information centers and coordination centers in species conservation, focused on collecting, validating, and publishing information on animal, fungal, plant, moss, and lichen species. Supported by the Federal Office for the Environment (OFEV), InfoSpecies coordinates these various centers and supports public authorities, private clients, research institutes, and natural history institutions.
musnatcoll.ch
The Association of Natural Science Museums and Collections in Switzerland and Liechtenstein (musnatcoll.ch) represents the interests of natural history museums vis-à-vis the Association of Swiss Museums, the Swiss Academy of Natural Sciences, the Swiss Confederation, politicians, and the general public. Its objective is to promote the importance of scientific collections and museums as an integral part of national and international cultural heritage. Beginning in 2026, a dedicated office will support the network through publications, events, fundraising, and cultural policy activities.
Swiss Academy of Sciences
The Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT) works at regional, national, and international level for the future of science and society. It strengthens the awareness for the sciences as a central pillar of cultural and economic development. The breadth of its support makes it a representative partner for politics. SCNAT links the sciences, provides expertise, promotes the dialogue between science and society, identifies and evaluates scientific developments. It is part of the association of the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences.