The Mammalogy collection represents almost every Order of extant mammals in the world today with an emphasis on rodents, bats, and local species.

The Ornithology collection highlights New England species and world diversity with a special collection of historic specimens from the Massachusetts State Cabinet of Natural History dating back to the 1860s.

The collection contains specimens representing the diversity of amphibian and reptile species and voucher specimens from the Massachusetts Herp Atlas.

Highlights include a large skeletal collection and a large series of specimens from Massachusetts stream surveys.

Collections Manager: Katherine Doyle

I am a wildlife biologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst with over 25 years of field experience, both in the US and abroad, and have been working as Collections Manager for the Natural History Collections since 1996. I received my B.S. and M.S. in Wildlife Biology from the Environmental Conservation Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. As Collections Manager, I am responsible for the organization, preparation, and care of all vertebrate and non-insect invertebrate specimens held in the Biology Department. In addition, I teach the labs for Bio. 548, Mammalogy, and coordinate the use of specimens for teaching, research, outreach, and exhibits.

My interest in collections started out small. While working on my graduate research, I learned how to prepare shrew skins and skeletons. Since then, I have worked with a wide range of taxa, from invertebrates barely visible to the naked eye to whales over 50 feet long. My research background is also diverse, focusing on wildlife-habitat relationships of small mammal communities and protected species in Massachusetts and, more recently, the extreme ecosystems of the high Andes of South America. As lead mammalogist for eight international expeditions to Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina, I conducted rapid biodiversity assessments for small mammals. Currently, I am involved with camera trap surveys in the Cordillera Vilcanota, Peru to document carnivore species, work that will contribute to research on the impacts of climate change and glacial retreat on mammal communities.

More Information

For more information about these collections, contact Collections Manager, Katherine Doyle.