image: Dozens of volunteers at UTA packaged and sorted the material over the course of a year before finally shipping it via ocean freight to Ecuador.
Credit: Photo courtesy UTA
As a result of hard work and collaboration between The University of Texas at Arlington’s Amphibian and Reptile Diversity Research Center (ARDRC) and the Joseph Rex Dinardo Jr. Herpetology and Natural History Science Research Trust in Philadelphia, thousands of literature items have been donated to the National Institute of Biodiversity (INABIO) in Quito, Ecuador, to help it jump start its renovated education and research program for biodiversity.
The Joseph Rex Dinardo Jr. Trust recently donated thousands of rare books and other scientific literature related to amphibians and reptiles to the ARDRC, making it one of the largest herpetology research libraries in the world. Due to its close affiliation to the ARDRC, the Dinardo Jr. Trust requested the help of UTA research scientists to find a home for the remainder of its natural history literature that did not pertain to herpetology.
“We knew this literature could have a big impact on both education and research at the right scientific institution, considering it spanned such a breadth of biodiversity and topics,” said Greg Pandelis, collections manager and biological curator for the ARDRC. “Given our close relationship and past collaboration with INABIO, we proposed the idea that the literature be donated there.”
INABIO is rapidly becoming one of the foremost entities for biodiversity research and education in South America, expanding recently with a new building to house its public exhibits and updated research facilities, including a state-of-the-art genomics lab. INABIO researchers expressed a strong desire to acquire and house a research library as part of that expansion, which would serve both their researchers and the public. However, the logistical hurdle in transporting the literature to such a distant country was not small.
“The ARDRC was able to secure a grant from the U.S. Agency for Internal Development to fully fund the transfer of this donation to INABIO,” Pandelis said. “From there, we employed the help of dozens of volunteers at UTA to package and sort the material over the course of a year before finally shipping it via ocean freight to Ecuador. They have received the materials and are in the process of indexing the massive donation in their new facilities.”
Pandelis emphasized that facilitating this donation cements UTA’s fruitful and ongoing collaborations with INABIO and the Dinardo Jr. Trust. INABIO has agreed to name both its library and a new species of reptile or amphibian in the future in recognition of Joseph Dinardo Jr. and his lifetime commitment to herpetology.
“For the National Biodiversity Institute of Ecuador, it has been an absolute privilege to have been a beneficiary of the Dinardo Jr. Trust, thanks to the close collaboration of our colleagues at The University of Texas at Arlington,” said Mario H. Yánez-Muñoz, an associate researcher at INABIO. “Thanks to this support, INABIO received an incredible donation of 8,570 books, 2,000 journals and 500 journal articles. This collaboration has allowed us to build an impressive bibliographic collection, with a strong focus on vertebrates. This donation will undoubtedly support the information needs of specialists, students and enthusiasts in the natural sciences throughout South America.”
“Uncle Joe lovingly curated this collection over 50 years, and his dying wish was to share it with those who would most appreciate it, furthering their understanding of herpetology and natural sciences,” Dinardo Jr.’s niece Constantina Lavonne Lambrou-Marino said. “My family and I are deeply grateful to Greg Pandelis, Mario Yánez-Muñoz, and their teams for thoughtfully executing this monumental process. Nicknamed ‘Lizard Man’ in Vietnam, Uncle Joe was especially fond of South America, and we are so pleased that his legacy will live on at INABIO.”
About The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA)
Located in the heart of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, The University of Texas at Arlington is a comprehensive teaching, research, and public service institution dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through scholarship and creative work. With an enrollment of approximately 41,000 students, UT Arlington is the second-largest institution in the UT System. UTA’s combination of outstanding academics and innovative research contributes to its designation as a Carnegie R-1 “Very High Research Activity” institution, a significant milestone of excellence. The University is designated as a Hispanic Serving-Institution and an Asian American Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution by the U.S. Department of Education and has earned the Seal of Excelencia for its commitment to accelerating Latino student success. The University ranks in the top five nationally for veterans and their families (Military Times, 2024), is No. 4 in Texas for advancing social mobility (U.S. News & World Report, 2025), and is No. 6 in the United States for its undergraduate ethnic diversity (U.S. News & World Report, 2025). UT Arlington’s approximately 270,000 alumni occupy leadership positions at many of the 21 Fortune 500 companies headquartered in North Texas and contribute to the University’s $28.8 billion annual economic impact on Texas.