Prince of Songkla University Natural History Museum is administered by the Faculty of Science, Prince of Songkla University. In January 2006 the Faculty of Science dedicated the Natural History Museum to Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn in honor of her 50th birthday. In recognition of this the Princess has requested that the museum now be named “พิพิธภัณฑสถานธรรมชาติวิทยา ๕0 พรรษา สยามบรมราชกุมารี” (Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Natural History Museum of PSU and her emblem is displayed) The Museum is responsible to the Faculty and the University for promoting the Natural History of southern Thailand. Within this field the Museum works to coordinate the museums services with other museums at a regional and an international level. Our prime role is to research, educate and promote interest in and knowledge about the make-up and development of the universe, the earth, its plant and animal life, together with their biology and ecology.

Vision and Mission

          The Museum’s vision is to conduct research in natural sciences especially in the area of biodiversity, education, conservation for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generation is southern Thailand. Our mission is to consolidate the Museum’s position as one of the leading national and regional museum services with the natural history field and to be one of south Thailand’s most visited destinations for national history research and education.

Organization

          Prince of Songkla University Natural History Museum is managed by the Policy, Planning and Academic Board appointed by the Faculty of Science. The present chairman of the board is the current Dean. The museum operations are divided into animal and plant reference collections section, and an exhibition and public education section.

Present Status

Reference Collections:

          The basis of the Museum’s operations is our collections which consist of hundreds of thousands of specimens, everything from mammals to pollen, plus rocks and minerals. These collections are considered to be among the largest collection in Thailand and certain sub-collections are unique. Among these are the butterfly collection and aquatic fauna collections. The Butterfly collection contains more than 800 species of approximately 1000 species known in Thailand, and includes rare endangered and some extinct species. The Aquatic fauna collections in our museum have been intensively collected mainly from the freshwater, marine and wetland habitats of southern Thailand. In the zoological collection of the museum are more than 150 species of coral, 400 species of mollusks, 400 species of crustaceans, 50 species of echinoderms, 800 species of fish and 80 species of amphibians and reptiles. The Bat specimen collection is considered to be the largest in the country. These collections are being converted into a database format for easy retrieval of information. They have been identified, scientifically classified and arranged taxonomically. The PSU Herbarium houses more than 25,000 registered specimens, mostly collected from southern Thailand. The PSU Herbarium is one of the three herbarium in Thailand registered internationally. Research on biodiversity of Peninsular Thailand is actively carried out in collaboration with researchers from all over the world.

Exhibition

          The present exhibitions have displays on topics related to natural history which are of benefit to elementary, secondary schools and the public. These include the following:

• Origins of earth and the geological time scale:
  Their focus is on the solar system, origins of earth, geography of southern Thailand and the evolution of life. Examples of rocks and fossils and experience life in a carboniferous forest, presented as a diorama.
• Amazing Nature:
  Interactive mechanical models simulate natural phenomena. Models of evolutionary humans.
• Ecosystems :
  Information about the many different ecosystems in Thailand; mangroves, coastal zone, rock & sands, forests.

Public Education

          This service has been considered to be the heart of the Museum’s activities since they stimulate and encourage our present and future generations to study science. At present, the museum organizes wide ranging activities that change monthly and is open to the public all days except Monday and Tuesday.

Future Development

          Associated work along with the plant genetic Conservation Project under the Royal Initiative of Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn in southern Thailand is being developed in the fields of a survey of biodiversity, biology and ecology of organisms to improve public awareness, public education and conservation.

          Future directions of the museum are to work at international levels with other leading museums in Asia Europe and in the USA. Schemes are being developed for cooperative research and education benefits for all. Exchange programs for museum staff, scientific specimens and information are also our targets.

          New exhibitions are being planned to cover more science and with more relevance to southern Thailand natural history that we hope will benefit local schools and the public. More education programs for public schools that will encourage them to visit and study more in the museum.