Vast collection, thanks to the solid and centuries-old tradition of naturalistic studies of the Neapolitan city. Most of the specimens date back to the first half of the 1900s. It is the most numerous of the museum's vertebrate collections, both for the number of taxa and for the more than 2.400 individuals that make it up. The oldest series dates back to 1812, or the year before the museum was founded, and includes specimens collected by Luigi Petagna for teaching Zoology. It includes birds from large Italian collections such as those prepared by the Florentine Cecilia Picchi and the Neapolitan Mario Schettino, both considered among the most important at national level. The first and only finds for Naples of Eagle owl (Bubo bubo) and Short-eared owl (Asio flammeus), as well as the Red-necked grebe (Podiceps grisegena) of Naples and the Pygmy cormorant (Microcarbo pygmaeus) of Ischitella (NA) are reported.
Photo: Red-necked grebe (Podiceps grisegena (Boddaert, 1783)), found in Naples.