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Museum Foundation
Welcome
to the website of the Louisiana State Arthropod Museum (LSAM) Foundation
We
provide a valuable service to the citizens of Louisiana and elsewhere
through diagnostic, outreach, and repository services. To ensure a steady
source of income during periods of financial uncertainty, our foundation
fund was created. It provides a reliable source of interest-generated
income for our museum.
Gifts
of all sizes are appreciated. Donations may take the form of cash, pledges
over time; donations of securities, tangible personal property, real
estate, bequests and other types of planned giving.
For
more information call 225-578-1838 or e-mail Victoria Bayless at (vbayless@agctr.lsu.edu).
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To make a secure donation using
your credit card click on the link below. That will take you to the LSU
Foundation website. Fill out the online form.
Important:
When you get to the field
entitled "For the benefit of" select "other."
You will be prompted with another field where you may put the following
information:
"Account 940-26-F005,
Department of Entomology, Louisiana State Arthropod Museum"
This is important and ensures
that your donation goes to the proper account. A receipt will be
generated that you can print out as a record of your contribution for tax
purposes.
Click Here to Donate 
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Thank
you! Your donations, large and small, are extremely important to our work!
What Your Donations Support
Insect identification and diagnostic services
Accurate
identification is the first and most important step in combating potential
insect threats:
West Nile
virus, Chagas
disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and various pet
diseases are all transmitted by various arthropod species. Using
resources available through the LSAM, these pests can be properly
identified and evaluated so that money, resources, and time are not wasted
on cases of mistaken identity.
- Agriculture, Forestry and Urban Pests
Newly
introduced crop pests
have the potential to cause millions of dollars of damage over a short
period of time. Often, much information is available about how to control
these pests in their native lands, but without a proper identification this
body of knowledge cannot be accessed.
Waves of
invasive bark beetles, Gypsy moths, and other insects pose a
continuous threat to Louisiana’s valuable timber resources. Treatment must
involve accurate identification of these foreign pests. A growing collection
of insect specimens from around the world greatly assists in these
identifications.
The Formosan
Subterranean Termite costs southern states over $1 billion a year in
damages, repairs, and control efforts. New Orleans alone has spent nearly
$300 million as a result of these destructive insects. Our ports of entry
are constantly being threatened by pests such as these, and diagnostic
services are necessary to prevent future attacks from potential billion-dollar
pests.
Public outreach and education
Insects are an
important part of the natural environment, and are absolutely essential in
maintaining ecological systems. One of the most important insect services
is pollination of natural and crop plants such as strawberries,
cotton, and soybeans. Decomposition of dead plant and animal
matter is another important role that insects play. Additionally, the
succession of these insects can be utilized by forensic entomologists
to determine the time of death for both humans and poached animals.
Providing favorable conditions for existing insect predators and parasites
of harmful pests can help reduce the cost and potential ecological harm of
pesticide usage.
Public outreach
via presentations and displays help communicate a better understanding of
the importance of insects and the services they provide. LSAM participates
in AgMagic, GEMS Day, and other notable campus-wide events.
We have also given several day-long public display presentations and
teacher workshops.
Louisiana's largest insect collection
Insect research
collections are a valuable and indispensable connection with the past. Each
specimen represents a species recorded from a time and place. It carries
with it a unique morphology and genetic code. These specimens allow one to analyze
past populations and track changes in geographic range and draw
connections with changes in weather and climate. It is important that the
collection remains active, both to preserve these specimens from the past (our
oldest specimen is from 1895!) and to continuously add new specimens,
so that researchers of the future will have a link to the past.
Another aspect
of the living museum is collaboration; allowing researchers from
around the world to utilize our insect collection for their own studies is
an important function of our museum. Specialists have come from such
prestigious research facilities as The Smithsonian Institution in
Washington, DC, and from as far as Florida, California, Norway,
Russia, and New Zealand.
Please consider a lasting donation
to the LSAM Foundation so that we may continue and increase our ability to
service stakeholders in Louisiana and the systematics community around the
world.
Back to LSAM
© LSAM
2007 Report broken links
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