NOTICE: Due to a lapse in annual appropriations, most of this website is not being updated. Learn more.
Form submissions will still be accepted but will not receive responses at this time. Sections of this site for programs using non-appropriated funds (such as NVLAP) or those that are excepted from the shutdown (such as CHIPS and NVD) will continue to be updated.
An official website of the United States government
Here’s how you know
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock (
) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.
The National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank Specimen Inventory
Published
Author(s)
Rebecca S. Pugh, Michael B. Ellisor, Amanda J. Moors, Paul R. Becker, Barbara J. Porter, Elizabeth A. Mackey, Michele M. Schantz, R. Demiralp, Stephen A. Wise
Abstract
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides for the cryogenic banking of marine mammal tissues in the National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank (NMMTB). The purpose of the NMMTB is to maintain quality controlled marine mammal tissues to permit retrospective analyses for the purpose of determining environmental trends and conducting analyses using new and innovative analytical techniques. The NMMTB was formally established in 1992 by the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Act (Public Law 102-587). Marine mammal tissues are collected through two projects, the Alaska Marine Mammal Tissue Archival Project (AMMTAP) and the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program (MMHSRP) and are maintained at NIST s National Biomonitoring Specimen Bank (NBSB) in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and at the Marine Environmental Specimen Bank (Marine ESB), Hollings Marine Laboratory, in Charleston, South Carolina. This document contains the current inventory through December 31, 2005 and includes information such as: species, collection location, animal morphometrics, tissues collected, and current status of the tissues.
Pugh, R.
, Ellisor, M.
, Moors, A.
, Becker, P.
, Porter, B.
, Mackey, E.
, Schantz, M.
, Demiralp, R.
and Wise, S.
(2006),
The National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank Specimen Inventory, NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD
(Accessed October 13, 2025)