Mammalogy
The collections in the Division of Mammalogy are curated by Arthur H. Harris and Markus J. Peterson. They are comprised of about 8,400 prepared specimens housed in accordance with the minimum standards suggested by the American Society of Mammalogists. Collecting emphasis has been on the acquisition of skeletal material along with the more traditional skin-skull/study skin specimens. As a result, the collection includes significant holdings of post-cranial osteological material. Geographic coverage of the mammalian material is largely restricted to the southwestern United States and is especially thorough for southern New Mexico and the El Paso vicinity. The mammal collection is searchable on Arctos. Although taxonomy, specimen identifications and associated data are constantly reviewed, errors such as outdated names, mistaken identifications and erroneous collection event information do occur in our database. Investigators should verify identifications by examination of specimens.