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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mysticete" data-source="post: 1582177" data-attributes="member: 67784">well, just dealing with studies from other professors and graduate students:evolution of saltwater foraging in cinclodes (tissues examined included muscle tissue, which is kind of hard to take from a living bird)Evolution and use of iridescence in feathers (needs special cameras that are unlikely to be dragged into the field)beak evolution and homoplasy (again, you need to take standardized pictures and measurements, which may not be taken for the bird in the way the author needs)The other element, and the real reason we need voucher specimens, is simply academic honesty.  Photos can be misleading or even faked, DNA can be inconclusive or contaminated, and simple human error can alter measurements.  A voucher specimen allows other researchers to examine said specimen and draw their own conclusions.  The ornithological literature is full of examples of birds which have been described as new species only to be later revealed to be hybrids, odd color morphs, birds with misplaced localities, misidentifications, and even fakes.  Had a voucher not been preserved, these mysteries and inaccuracies would never have been brought to life.</blockquote>