Early awareness of wild animals in Taiwan began with their value in use. In view of the rapid increase in the use of wild animals, the Governor-Genereal of Taiwan, Den Kenjiro, promulgated the “Enforcement Decree on the Preservation of Historic Sites and Natural Monuments in Taiwan” in Taisho 11 (1922). The “Historic Sites and Natural Monuments Survey Society” was established in Showa 5 (1930) to record and protect Taiwan’s unique historic sites and biological resources. The report was completed by Professor Aoki Bunichiro and Assistant Professor Tateishi Shinkichi from the Faculty of Science and Agriculture of Taihoku Imperial University. This is the “Survey Report on Natural Monuments, Volume VI” published on March 5, Showa 15 (1940), by the Department of Internal Affairs of the Governor-General of Taiwan.

This dugong was captured by the fishermen in the Bashi Channel in 1937. Professor Aoki Bunichiro brought it to Taiwan for dissection and making specimen. The skeleton and taxidermy specimens of this dugong is now in the collection of the National Taiwan Museum. The video graphic documentation of the dissection is kept by the NTU Museum of Anthropology. This photograph was taken in the location where it was captured. NTU also held the skeleton of another dugong, which was captured in Palau also and made into skeleton specimen by Professor Hirasaka Kyosuke.

The pygmy sperm whale in the photograph was beached in Ishigaki Island in 1935. In the spring of 1936, the skeleton of this pygmy sperm whale was delivered to Professor Hirasaka Kyosuke of Taihoku Imperial University for identification. The pygmy sperm whale is a small toothed whale. Because of its secretive nature, the behavior and ecology of pygmy sperm whale remain elusive. Our current understanding of pygmy sperm whale comes primarily from specimens made from beached individuals.

Kai Senshu, an illustrated guide of shellfish, was published in 1914 by Hirase Yoichiro, the curator of the first shellfish museum in Asia, Hirase Shellfish Museum. Taihoku Imperial University received the collection and Kai Senshu from Hirase Shellfish Museum after its closure. However, this book ended up being left unnoticed in the zoological library for many years. Kai Senshu was only reintroduced to the world until Professor Jiun-Hong Chen found it by chance.

Following Spanish and German administrations in the 19th century, Palao (Palau) became an overseas dependency of the Japanese Empire after World War I. Palao is currently spelled Palau; the former was used during Japanese colonial rule. In June 1936, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science established the Palao Tropical Biological Station in Koror. As soon as the station was in place, Siro Kawaguti, a young zoology lecturer from Taihoku Imperial University, arrived at the station to study coral reef biology. Kawaguti’s observations and findings in Palau are the pioneers of modern works in coral physiology. This image was taken from Kawaguti’s diary, which was written during his stay in Palau. It translates as: “All my Jikatabi had been torn apart by walking on coral reefs around the Palao Tropical Biological Station in Koror. There were white marks of Jikatabi on my feet, but they became well-tanned except for my white soles since I started walking on my bare feet. Now, my feet look similar to those of Palau people.” The English translation was adopted from Satoh, T., Iguchi, A., Okaji, K., Nakamura, T., 2012. Materials for the Study of Reef-Building Corals: Reports by Dr. Siro Kawaguti during His Stay in the Palao Tropical Biological Station in 1936-1940, Galaxea, Journal of Coral Reef Studies, Vol. 14 Supplement.

This particular skeleton specimen of sika deer was purchased from the Ueno Scientific Corporation (established in 1930 in Ueno Kamezumi-cho, Japan) by the Zoological Institute of Taihoku Imperial University. The specimen stand is affixed with a paper production label from the Ueno Scientific Corporation and a metal label from the Faculty of Science and Agriculture, Taihoku Imperial University. To make the skeleton specimen, the fur, skin, musculature, and internal organs are removed, and the complete skeleton is preserved. Skeleton specimens are often used for display and education.

This skeleton specimen of Bonin flying fox (Pteropus pselaphon Lay), a megabat, was purchased from Shimadzu Corporation by the Zoological Institute of Taihoku Imperial University. This specimen was originally collected from the Ogasawara Islands. The specimen stand is affixed with a paper production label from the Shimadzu Corporation and a metal label from the Faculty of Science and Agriculture, Taihoku Imperial University.

The production and collection labels for this skeleton specimen are missing, making it impossible to identify its origin, but it still bears the metal label from the Faculty of Science and Agriculture, Taihoku Imperial University. The leopard cat is a native feline species in Taiwan. Due to as habitat fragmentation caused by human development, roadkill, human hunting, and pesticide poisoning, the native leopard car population has sharply declined in recent years, making it an endangered species in Taiwan.

This wet specimen features a late-stage fetus of pangolins. Research on pangolins in Taiwan can be traced back to Professor Aoki Bunichiro of Taihoku Imperial University during the Japanese rule. In his 1940 report “Survey Report on Natural Monuments, Volume 6,” Professor Aoki specifically investigated and reported on pangolins. Aoki pointed out that pangolins give birth to only one offspring each year and called for conserving pangolins as a natural monument due to a significant population decline caused by excessive hunting. As a result, conservation areas were designated to protect them. A wet specimen is a biological specimen preserved and fixed in a solution. If processed properly, wet specimens can preserve a specimen’s complete set of morphological characteristics, especially that of the soft tissues, which are otherwise not preserved by other methods.

The mouse study skins presented in this exhibition were produced by the research group of Professor Aoki Bunichiro at Taihoku Imperial University. Some of the specimens were collected by Professor Aoki himself. Study skins are a type of taxidermy specimen commonly used to preserve rodent and bird specimens for research purposes. To make a study skin, the internal organs of the animal are removed, and the skin, together with fur or feathers, is further treated with preservatives to prevent decay. The specimen is then stuffed for preservation.

The Hirase Shellfish Museum was established in the Okazaki district of Kyoto, Japan in 1913. The museum housed over ten thousand shellfish specimens— with three thousand Japanese specimens and seven thousand oversea specimens. The specimens were collected from an area spanning Hokkaido in the north down to the main island of Taiwan and then south to Southeast Asia and Oceania. When the museum closed in 1919, the collection was divided up and delivered to Tokyo Imperial University, Kyoto City, and Taihoku Imperial University. The Taihoku portion of the collection was kept inside a wooden crate tucked away in a corner of the building in which Taihoku Imperial University’s Zoological Institute was housed. The Zoological Institute became the Department of Zoology of National Taiwan University after the end of World War II, which later reorganized and merged with the Department of Botany and Institute of Fishery Sciences to form the present Department of Life Science in 2003. These specimens were laid forgotten for many years, and it was only when a fire accident left the wooden crate that they were rediscovered by Chen Jiun-hong, then a student who is now a retired professor of the department. Following an investigation, these shellfish specimens were confirmed to be those from the Hirase Shellfish Museum nearly a century ago.