NSF/AID: Terrestrial Vertebrate Faunas of the Humid Montane Forests of Oaxaca: An Intensive Biological Survey and Geographic Analysis

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The study consists of an analysis of patterns of distribution, diversity and endemism in the terrestrial vertebrate fauna (amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals) of humid montane forests in the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico. Two years will be spent exploring the four mountain ranges in the state that are least well known faunistically: the Sierra de Miahuatlan, Sierra de Yucuyacua, Sierra de Huautla, and various mountains in the Chimalapas region. Information from other recent explorations, as well as historical records, will be added in a geographic information system (GIS) data base. The GIS will allow analysis of the faunistic data in relation to physical geographic features, economic characteristics, and political limits. This study is a collaborative effort between the Field Museum of Natural History and the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, and will result in the training of seven young Mexican biologists in techniques for biological inventories, data management, specimen curation, and analysis of conservation priorities.