mammalogy

[MAMMA(L) + -LOGY.]

Mammalogy is a subdivision of vertebrate Zoology, and its practitioners specialize in the scientific study of the biology of those species included in the class mammalia. Mammalogy as a discipline grew out of the study of the natural history of terrestrial vertebrates; a renewed interest in natural sciences began in Europe during the sixteenth century. In America the scientific study of living and fossil organisms was fostered by President Thomas Jefferson. His description of fossil mammal remains led him to hope that living representatives survived in the interior of North America. The expeditions of Lewis and Clark (1804–1806) and Zebulon Pike (1805–1807) were charged with recording data on the flora and fauna encountered during their travels. Subsequent expeditions sponsored by the U.S. government were staffed in part by scientists, who made important collections of birds and mammals. During the 1820s Thomas Say accompanied Major Stephan Long to the Rocky Mountains; William Keating was the naturalist on Long's Mississippi expeditions. The work of the U.S. Topological Survey led by John C. Fremont in the 1840s and 1850s resulted in many important discoveries of new vertebrate species.

The first major work on North American mammals, written by John James Audubon and J. Bachman, was published between 1846 and 1854. This work was followed by the scholarly work of Spencer Baird in 1859. The scientific study of mammals involved the description of new species and the preservation of reference specimens. The need for a repository for biological materials, such as a museum, became obvious; a reference library to house scientific literature published worldwide was also necessary. The first public museum in what was to become the United States was founded at Charleston, South Carolina, in 1773, and Charles Willson Peale founded his private museum in Philadelphia in 1785, but the national collection of artifacts and specimens began with the establishment of the Smithsonian Institution in 1846. Within the Smithsonian, Baird organized the U.S. National Museum in 1879. Under the guidance of C. Hart Merriman, the Bureau of Biological Survey was organized in 1886 within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The collections resulting from the survey were housed at the Smithsonian. The efforts of Merriam and his coworkers greatly advanced knowledge of mammal species and their distributions.

To increase communication among North American mammalogists, the American Society of Mammalogists was founded in 1919 under the leadership of Hartley H. T. Jackson of the Biological Survey. The Society initiated The Journal of Mammalogy, which has published articles dealing in a broad manner with studies on the biology of mammals. The society has also fostered research and the publication of results of research continuously since its founding, and it has served, through its annual meetings, as a forum for reviewing research results and addressing national and international issues.

Taxonomic Advances

The description and naming of species and their classification is termed "taxonomy." The collections of the U.S. Biological Survey and other museums' collections have contributed greatly to this endeavor. In 1959 E. Raymond Hall and Keith Kelson published The Mammals of North America, a two-volume synthesis of taxonomic and biogeographical information. The volumes offered range maps of the species and subspecies, thus providing an empirical basis for advances in biogeographical theory. This work also laid the groundwork for the 1999 natural history synthesis of the mammalian fauna of North America, The Smithsonian Book of North American Mammals.

Studies of the physiological and anatomical structure of mammals have contributed much information to our understanding of how mammalian bodies function. The applications of such knowledge to human medicine is incalculable. The standard laboratory mammals, the mouse, rat, and guinea pig, have made possible many medical advances and breakthroughs. The contribution of mammalian studies to genetics and cytogenetics is also vast. Studies of mammal populations have led to a significant understanding of how ecological communities are organized and function. The study of life history and reproduction has been essential to the formulation of plans for the management and conservation of wildlife populations. The bacteria, viruses, and parasites of non-human mammals are often capable of infecting human hosts, thus causing serious outbreaks of disease. The study of mammalian populations and their diseases has been a focus of public health studies for decades. Rabies, tularemia, plague, Lyme disease, and hemorrhagic fevers are carried by a variety of mammalian hosts, and the study of mammalian populations is necessary to control disease outbreaks.

The fossil mammals of North America have long been studied. The richness of the fauna and the history of episodic extinctions have supplied data and fueled speculation about events leading to a faunal collapse. Extinctions in the last 12,000 years have been linked to human occupation of North America. The ancient mammal fauna of North America was summarized in Evolution of Tertiary Mammals (1998), edited by C. M. Janis, K. Scott, and L. L. Jacobs.

Conservation

Conservation concerns in the late nineteenth century focused on North American species: the American bison, pronghorned antelope, beaver, big horned sheep, and grizzly bear. The New York Zoological Society and the National Zoological Park were involved early on in the propagation of endangered species. World concern with vanishing wildlife led to the publication of two important volumes—Extinct and Vanishing Mammals of the Western Hemisphere (1942) by G. M. Allen and Extinct and Vanishing Mammals of the Old World (1945) by F. Harper—assessing the status of wild mammal populations: Work on endangered species continues to be a priority for Conservation efforts. The scientific study of mammals touches on many related disciplines in biology. Mammalogy is taught as a college-level discipline at most major universities. Collections for study are supported at most major state and university museums.

Bibliography

Allen, Glover Morrill. Extinct and Vanishing Mammals of the Western Hemisphere. New York: New York Zoological Park, 1942.

Audubon, John J., and John Bachman. The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America. 3 vols. New York: J. J. Audubon, 1846– 1854.

Baird, Spencer Fullerton. Mammals of North America. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1859.

Birney, Elmer C., and Jerry R. Choate, eds. Seventy-Five Years ofMammalogy. Provo, Utah: American Society of Mammalogists, 1994.

Hall, E. Raymond. The Mammals of North America. 2d ed. 2 vols. New York: Wiley, 1981.

Janis, Christine M., Kathleen Scott, and Louis L. Jacobs, eds. Evolution of Tertiary Mammals in North America. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998.

Martin, Paul S., and Richard G. Klein, eds. Quaternary Extinctions. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1984.

Sterling, Keir B. Last of the Naturalists: The Career of C. HartMerriam. New York: Arno Press, 1977.

Wilson, D. E., and John F. Eisenberg. "Origin and Applications of Mammalogy in North America." In Current Mammalogy, edited by Hugh Genoways. New York: Plenum, 1990.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: the branch of zoology that studies mammals

Part of a Series on Zoology

Branches of Zoology

Anthropology · Anthrozoology Apiology · Arachnology Arthropodology · Cetology Conchology · Entomology Ethology · Helminthology Herpetology · Ichthyology Malacology · Mammalogy Myrmecology · Nematology Neuroethology · Ornithology Paleozoology · Planktology Primatology

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In zoology, mammalogy is the study of mammals – a class of vertebrates with characteristics such as homeothermic metabolism, fur, four-chambered hearts, and complex nervous systems. Mammalogy has also been known as "mastology," "theriology," and "therology."

Mammalogy branches off into other taxonomically-oriented disciplines such as primatology (study of primates), and cetology (study of cetaceans). There are many more.

See also

• List of mammalogists
• Important publications in mammalogy
• Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, South Africa

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