Skip to main content

Mammals of the Neotropics, Volume 1

The Northern Neotropics: Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana

With color and b&w plates by Fiona Reid and maps by Sigrid James Bonner

Mammals of the Neotropics, Volume 1

The Northern Neotropics: Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana

With color and b&w plates by Fiona Reid and maps by Sigrid James Bonner
In recent decades, growing numbers of researchers have been drawn to the rich and highly threatened biotic diversity of the Neotropics, where mammals are among the most difficult animals to observe and study in detail. Mammals of the Neotropics fills the need for a comprehensive, up-to-date survey of existing knowledge of the area’s wild mammals, both terrestrial and marine. This first of three planned volumes covers the northern Neotropics, including southern Central America.

John Eisenberg, a leading researcher of Neotropical fauna, begins the volume with a discussion of historical biogeography and contemporary habitats of the northern Neotropics. Each of the chapters that follow presents a mammalian order, with data for all indigenous species. Eisenberg has provided physical descriptions and summaries of range and habitat for nearly 450 species. For those species that have been studied in the field or in captivity, additional notes on natural history are included. For the larger taxa, field keys to help to identify the specimens. Range maps, line drawings, and color plates supplement the text, further aiding identification.

Throughout the book, Eisenberg provides a larger context for the species descriptions. He comments on the diversity of forms within each order, places the Neotropical species in a worldwide geographical perspective, and reviews taxonomic questions and controversies. At the end of each chapter, an extensive bibliography directs readers to related articles on systematics, behavior, ecology, and evolution. Eisenberg concludes with chapters on speciation events and mammalian community ecology.

No comparable account of South and Central American mammals has ever been published in any language. This volume of Mammals of the Neotropics and the forthcoming companion volumes will be an invaluable reference for students and professionals and will help further the research that is so vital to conservation efforts.


550 pages | 110 color plates, 310 maps, 103 line drawings | 8-1/2 x 11 | © 1989

Biological Sciences: Biology--Systematics, Conservation, Tropical Biology and Conservation

Table of Contents

1. An Introduction to Historical Biogeography and Contemporary Habitats of Northern South America
2. Order Marsupialia
3. Order Xenarthra (Edentata)
4. Order Insectivora
5. Order Chiroptera
6. Order Primates
7. Order Canivora (Fissipedia)
8. Order Pinnipedia
9. Order Cetacea
10. Order Sirenia
11. Order Perissodactyla
12. Order Artiodactyla
13. Order Rodentia
14. Order Lagomorpha
15. Speciation and Faunal Affinities of Mammals in the Northern Neotropics
16. Mammalian Community Ecology
Index of Scientific Names
Index of Common Names

Be the first to know

Get the latest updates on new releases, special offers, and media highlights when you subscribe to our email lists!

Sign up here for updates about the Press