When Ana Motta first visited the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology (UMMZ) two years ago, she wasn't interviewing for a job. She was attending a herpetology meeting (SSAR 2024) and was struck by the depth of the museum’s world-class collections.

"I remember walking through the collection and thinking, 'Wow, this is really amazing,'" she recalled. So when the position of Collection Manager for the UMMZ's Division of Reptiles and Amphibians opened due to a retirement, she jumped at the chance to apply. She regards the opportunity to lead the world's largest university-based herpetological collections as both an honor and a responsibility. "It's one of the largest reptile and amphibian collections in the world, but what excites me even more is that it's incredibly active and innovative," said Ana.

Ana joins the UMMZ this September from the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute & Natural History Museum. She points to the UMMZ's longstanding leadership in digitization, collection care, and research as qualities that made the move to Ann Arbor appealing to her. "Michigan has always been impactful," said Ana. "Not just because of the size of the collection, but because of the innovations happening here." She looks forward to contributing to and building on that legacy.

She is also excited to build upon the work of former Collection Manager Greg Schneider, whose 40 years of service helped establish the collection as an international resource. "Greg is someone I've looked up to throughout my career," she said. “Knowing that I’m stepping into a collection that’s already in such excellent condition gives me the opportunity to help expand and advance our impact even further.”

Growing up in a small town of about 15,000 people in Brazil, Ana never imagined she would become a herpetologist. As an undergraduate, she focused on field research and amphibian collecting, but graduate school shifted her perspective. While studying Andean frogs, she visited more than a dozen natural history collections across the United States, Brazil, and Peru. Those experiences changed the direction of her career.

"I realized it wasn't a professor that I wanted to be," she said. "I wanted to be a collection manager. I have such a respect for collections. I couldn't have done my graduate research without them."

That experience now shapes her philosophy in her new role. "My goal is to make collections available," she said. "Collections only fulfill their purpose when they're being used." For decades, that access has come through loans, visiting researchers, and collaborations. Today, digitization is opening entirely new possibilities. "Every new technology gives us another way to make collections available," Ana said. "That's always going to be an ongoing part of our work."

Equally important to Ana is mentoring students. "I really love working with students," she said. As a first-generation college graduate, she understands how transformative opportunities in museums can be. Even students who never pursue careers in research gain something valuable from working with collections, she says. "They may become teachers, policymakers, or work in entirely different fields," she said. "But they'll understand why collections matter and why preserving biodiversity matters."

One of Ana's goals is to help the public rethink what natural history collections are. "People often think collections are static," she said. "That they're just shelves with jars." In reality, collections are dynamic scientific resources. Curiosity, she believes, is at the heart of it all, and she's excited to help answer new questions as technology advances.

"People kept asking me, 'What brought you to Michigan?'" Ana said with a laugh. "And I kept saying, 'Because it's Michigan!'"