This article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi: 10.1111/1462-2920.14818 Skeleton bones in museum indoor environments offer niches for fungi and are affected by weathering and deposition of secondary minerals Flavia Pinzari 1,2 , Lorraine Cornish 3 and Anne D. Jungblut 2* 1 Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment, Via della Navicella 2-4, 00184 Rome, Italy 2 Life Sciences Department, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD London, UK 3 Conservation Centre, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD London, UK *Corresponding author Dr Anne D. Jungblut, Life Sciences Department, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD, London, United Kingdom, email: a.jungblut@nhm.ac.uk, phone: +44 (0) 20 7942 5285. Running title Fungi on museum skeleton bones Keywords Bone, hydroxyapatite, fungi, indoor environment, biodeterioration, biofilm, natural history museum collections, conservation Originality-Significance Statement Our work represents the first evaluation of fungal communities inhabiting the large iconic blue whale skeleton specimen “Hope”, displayed at the Natural History Museum in London. We document This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.