Essig Museum of Entomology

What Essig Museum of Entomology does

The Essig Museum of Entomology is a university-affiliated research collection of terrestrial arthropods housed at the University of California, Berkeley. It maintains more than 5 million specimens, making it one of the largest university-based entomological collections in North America. The collection was established in 1939 and renamed in honor of its founder, Professor Edward Oliver Essig, in 1972. It functions as a non-commercial scientific and educational institution whose core activities are specimen preservation, taxonomic research, biodiversity documentation, graduate and undergraduate training, and public outreach.

The museum is embedded in UC Berkeley's research infrastructure and collaborates with the Berkeley Natural History Museums (BNHM) consortium, the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (MVZ), the Jepson Herbarium, the USDA, CalFire, the Amah Mutsun Land Trust, and the National Science Foundation (NSF). It also contributes training imagery derived from its holdings to iNaturalist and Google Lens to support automated insect identification, positioning the collection as a data source for consumer AI applications.

Funding is non-commercial and diversified across state appropriations to UC Berkeley, competitive research grants from NSF and USDA, philanthropic donations, in-kind specimen contributions, and an Adopt-A-Drawer sponsorship program priced at $500–$1,000 per drawer (approximately $70 per drawer at unit level). The museum employs approximately 18 staff and operates without an endowment. There is no commercial product line, no subscription or licensing revenue, and no enterprise customer base; all activity is oriented to scientific research, education, and public-interest biodiversity work.

Name

Essig Museum of Entomology

Legal name

Essig Museum of Entomology, University of California, Berkeley

Website

https://essig.berkeley.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1939

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Essig Museum of Entomology is a UC Berkeley research collection housing 5+ million terrestrial arthropod specimens for taxonomic research, biodiversity documentation, education, and AI training-data contribution to iNaturalist and Google Lens.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Natural History Museum & Entomological Research Collection

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums (71211), Libraries and Archives (51921)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Science & Technology Museums (THAJADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Archives, Special Collections & Preservation Operations (Rare Materials, Conservation) (EDAEAGAJ), Terrestrial Ecology & Habitat Surveys (EUAHAHAA), Wildlife, Biodiversity & Habitat Conservation Administration (BPAIAMAG)

Keywords

• Entomological research collection
• Arthropod specimen curation
• Insect biodiversity studies
• Museum digitization services
• Taxonomic identification services

Headquarters

HQ city

Berkeley

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. University Funding: Historical support from UC Berkeley Department of Entomology budget line item. Currently administered through Vice Chancellor for Research after 1980s departmental reorganization. Does not have an endowment and relies on state funds.
2. Donations and Contributions: Individual donations through Give To Cal platform. Adopt A Drawer program ($500 curated drawers, $1000 'Oh My' display drawers) with laser-engraved maple plaques. General donations support staff salaries, student engagement, outreach.
3. Grant Funding: Research grants from NSF, USDA, and other agencies support specific research projects, curation, education, and digitization initiatives. Examples include BigBee NSF grant for bee digitization.
4. Specimen Donations: Accepts specimen donations from collectors, particularly Western North America specimens, historical collections, and research vouchers. Also accepts historical documents, photographs, and data sets from alumni.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Essig Museum of Entomology maintains and provides access to over 5,000,000 terrestrial arthropod specimens for scientific research, education, and public engagement. It offers specimen identification, digitization of collections through projects such as BigBee, LepNet, and CalBug, and supports researchers, students, and citizen scientists. Founded as the California Insect Survey in 1939 and renamed in 1972, the museum operates as a non-commercial academic research facility within UC Berkeley.

Product overview

The Essig Museum of Entomology operates as a university-based research collection and educational institution offering specimen-based products and services. The core offering is the specimen collection of over 5,000,000 terrestrial arthropods, supported by digitization services (BigBee, LepNet, CalBug), identification assistance, and public outreach programs including seminars and citizen science initiatives. The museum's digital products include specimen databases and high-resolution image archives, while its service offerings encompass specimen loans, educational programs, and collaborative research partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Specimen Collection Access
• Specimen Identification Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 5 million terrestrial arthropod specimens in collection
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

AI capability2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered minor, major and core.

• Undergraduate Research Apprentice Program (URAP)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Students from URAP assist with spider survey research, fieldwork, specimen sorting, curation, and databasing as part of their research apprenticeship.
• Indonesia Research Center for BiologymajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Collaboration on Sulawesi expedition (2016). Local partners in Bogor, West Java facilitated permitting and provided access to museum facilities and expertise.
• Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (UC Berkeley)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Multi-taxon survey collaboration on Sulawesi island expedition led by Jim McGuire, with co-PIs Rauri Bowie, Rosemary Gillespie, and Susan Perkins from MVZ and Essig Museum.
• Berkeley Natural History Museums (BNHM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Essig Museum is part of the Berkeley Natural History Museums consortium alongside the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, UC & Jepson Herbaria, UC Paleontology Museum, and UC Botanical Garden. Collaborates on joint events like Darwin Day and shares resources for research and education.
• UC Berkeley Department of EntomologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHistorical partnership with the Department of Entomology. After 1980s reorganization, administration moved to Dean of College of Natural Resources and then Vice Chancellor for Research.
• Jepson HerbariumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-presented butterfly identification workshop in May 2017, combining entomology and botany expertise for naturalists and educators.
• Amah Mutsun Land Trust StewardsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperation on post-fire biodiversity monitoring project in San Vicente Redwoods Preserve, studying effects of fuel reduction treatments on arthropods.
• Bonny Doon Fire Safe CouncilminorOthersCollaboration on post-fire study examining effects of forest fuel reduction on ground-dwelling arthropods in Santa Cruz Mountains.
• CalFireminorOthersCooperation on study of post-fire forest management effects on arthropod diversity in cooperation with California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
• Friends of Albany HillminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on butterfly mural project documenting Lepidoptera species at Albany Hill. Essig Museum provided species documentation and educational support.
• Pacific Coast Entomological SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint events including screening of 'The Love Bugs' documentary and co-hosting of Lepidopterists' Society gatherings.
• SFO AirportminorOthersTemporary exhibit in San Francisco International Airport terminal (May 2019 - January 2020) showcasing damaged-wood display.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• iDigBio (Integrated Digitized Biocollections): National Resource for Advancing Digitization of Biodiversity Collections, funded by NSF. Comparable as a digitization infrastructure peer whose digitization standards and aggregation platform affect how Essig's digitized specimens are exposed and reused.
• iNaturalist: Citizen-science platform for recording and identifying biodiversity observations. Comparable as a partner that consumes Essig specimen imagery as training data and as a complementary citizen-science channel, though not a peer collection itself.

Direct peers

• Museum of Comparative Zoology (Harvard): University-based research collection at Harvard with significant entomology holdings. Most directly comparable as a Harvard-affiliated academic research collection with specimen loans and digitization programs.
• Bohart Museum of Entomology: UC Davis-based entomology research collection with a similar mission of housing, curating, and providing access to insect specimens for research, teaching, and outreach. Most directly comparable peer given identical university-museum structure and arthropod focus.
• McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity (Florida Museum): University of Florida-based research center dedicated to Lepidoptera and biodiversity research. Comparable as a university-based, grant-funded research collection focused on butterflies and moths, overlapping with Essig's LepNet focus area.

Broad incumbents

• American Museum of Natural History: Major natural history museum with one of the world's premier entomology collections and active digitization initiatives. Comparable in collection scale and digitization ambition, but operates as a private nonprofit with public exhibits.
• Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County: Major entomology research collection on the US West Coast, comparable in research mission and digitization activity, with the additional dimension of public exhibit revenue.
• California Academy of Sciences: San Francisco-based natural history institution with a significant entomology collection and active research programs. Comparable as a California-based natural history research collection, though it operates a public aquarium and museum.
• Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History: The largest natural history collection in North America with a significant entomology department. Comparable as a research and digitization leader, but operates at national-museum scale with federal funding rather than as a university department.
• Field Museum of Natural History: Chicago-based natural history museum with a major insect collection and active digitization/AI initiatives. Comparable in research collection scope, though operates as a private institution with public exhibits.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/essig_museum
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/essig-museum-of-entomology

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Essig Museum of Entomology