Essential Mammal Traits and Global Change

​​Changes in life history parameters are common responses to global change. Unfortunately, mammals are under-represented in global change studies because a majority of species are small, secretive, or labor-intensive to monitor. Using data gleaned from digitized museum specimens, historic field censuses, and the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), we are working to document body size and reproductive parameters in common North American small mammals. These data span more than a century and are yielding new knowledge about dynamics of mammal life histories at continental scale. They are also providing critical baselines for comprehending small mammal response to environmental change.

From GEO-BON (https://geobon.org/ebvs)

Breeding phenology of the North American deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) across North American ecoregions reconstructed from digitized museum specimen records and NEON observations. From McLean et al. in press Ecosphere.