The Division of Reptiles & Amphibians maintains a collection that is worldwide in scope and presently, (as of annual report 2006-07) contain 238000 catalogued lots representing 428,517 individual specimens (1,064 genera and 5,266 species) of which 13,516 are skeletons This includes 470 Primary Type specimens (representing 422 taxa) and 5,450 Paratypes (representing 783 taxa). The average growth over the last ten years has been nearly 4000 specimens per year. The auxiliary research collections contain 2,145 radiographs, 7,303 kodachrome slides, and 6,115 frozen tissue samples.

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News & Publications

Conservation in Madagascar science coverScience Magazine 2008
Conservation in Madagascar.
An international team of scientists, including Ronald A. Nussbaum, Curator of the Division of Reptiles and Amphibians, UMMZ, have used new, high-resolution planning tools to suggest priorities for expansion of protected areas in Madagascar. (more)

Keith Pecor has accepted a tenure-track position at The College of New Jersey. Kieth and Stephanie will be moving to Hopewell Township, NJ this summer. We wish them all the best.

Richards C.L. 2006. Has the evolution of complexity in the amphibian papilla influenced anuran speciation rates? Journal Compilation. European Society for Evolutionary Biology: 1222-1230

Alexander Kupfer, Hendrik Muller, Marta M. Antoniazzi, Carlos Jared, Hartmut Greven, Ronald A. Nussbaum & Mark Wilkinson 2006. Parental investment by skin feeding in a caecilian amphibian. Nature: Vol 440: 926-928

Christopher J. Raxworthy and Ronald A. Nussbaum 2006. Six New Species of Occipital-Lobed Calumma Chameleons (Squamata: Chamaeleonidae) from Montane Regions of Madagascar, with a New Description and Revision of Calumma brevicorne. Copeia, Vol 4: 711-734