The Chordate collection (except Tissue Bank) contains more than 30,000 specimens, 24.000 of which have geographical origin documented. Collection grows annually by donations and passive recollections. Specimens come from several sources: nature, the Zoological Park of Barcelona, and animal recovery centers in Catalonia. There is a Laboratory where specimens are prepared (study skins, mounted, skeletons, tissues, etc). Chordates are primarily used for scientific and educational purposes. Chondrichthyes collection consists of 580 specimens; Actinopterygii collection contains 9.600 specimens. In both cases, are whole animals alcohol preserved, collected in Spain and Africa. Amphibians, 1.400 specimens, are preserved in alcohol; nearly all come from the Iberian Peninsula. There are nearly 2.300 reptiles, half from Spain and the rest from America and Africa. With more than 14.000 specimens, mostly from Spain, birds make up the largest part of the Chordate collection. Bird collection contains specimens from Equatorial Guinea, Ecuador and Vietnam. The mammal collection (more than 5.000 specimens) is largely a study collection. Half of the mammals in the collection come from fieldwork carried out on the Iberian Peninsula. Highlights include the collection of African mammals, with a few American and Asiatic mammals.