Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections September 2017 - 36

Profiles

Figure 2. Pygmy skunk (Spilogale pygmaea; left); a secretive and poorly known mephitid,
the sole continental endemic carnivore from tropical dry forests of Mexico. Tanned skins
(right). The six species of cats (Felidae) in Mexico are well represented in this set of holdings.

gallery of digital images of the National Collection of Mammals is available on the Irekani website of IBUNAM (http://
unibio.unam.mx/irekani/). Personal and daily field CNMA
catalogs may be examined directly at the request of the user.
Collection methods, preparation, preservation, incorporation,
maintenance, exchange and loan of specimens, parts and their
derivatives, of the CNMA are carried out in accordance with
the basic curatorial standards for Collections of Mammalian
Systematics (Hafner et al. 1997), as well as international
guidelines for the use of wild mammals in research and education (Sikes et al. 2016). CNMA facilities are treated with
a pesticide made with a combination of Cypermethrin and
Bromadiolone in June and in December to prevent infestation
of insect pests.
The CNMA has 1) a specialized area for the preparation, drying, assembly and preservation of collection specimens; 2) a
common space for laboratory work; 3) an office for cabinet
work; 4) a dermestary for cleaning bone material; 5) a room
with sinks for washing specimens, equipment and collection
materials; and, 5) a laboratory for specialized techniques,
including cytogenetics, which houses a deep freezer with the
collection of frozen tissues at -72° C (Fig. 3). Upon deposition of specimens by researchers, the CNMA staff will
catalog them; in return, donors will receive the corresponding
receipt. This process is required by the environmental branch
of the Mexican government.
The CNMA is registered with the National Register of
Biological Collections of the Wildlife office of the Ministry
of the Environment and Natural Resources of the Mexican
government with the key D.F. MA. 022. 0497, 1997, in accordance with the provisions of the General Law of Wildlife (Ze36 * SPNHC Connection

dillo Ponce de León 2000). Mexican wild fauna is owned by
the nation and this Register allows the Mexican government
to monitor the destination of wildlife in biological collections
(Cervantes et al. 2016). The CNMA is also part of the directories of the mammalian collections of Mexico and the world
compiled, respectively, by the Mexican Association of Mammalogy, A. C. (Lorenzo et al. 2006) and the American Society
of Mammalogists (ASM; Hafner et al. 1997). Additionally,
the CNMA has the international accreditation certificate from
the ASM Systematic Collections Committee (Hafner 1995).
These accreditations identify the CNMA as an important
mammal collection recognized nationally and internationally
for the benefit of preserved mammal materials and researchers. These acknowledgments were awarded in response to
the high standards of the curatorial procedures carried out by
CNMA (Cervantes et al. 2016).
Legal Requirements
Mexican environmental laws require students, professional
mammalogists, and other users of scientific collecting permits
to deposit voucher specimens collected for their research
at accredited institutions, which also includes CNMA. The
CNMA procedures are in accordance with the current official regulations contained in the General Wildlife Law
and Official Mexican Standards NOM-059 and NOM -126
(Lichtinger 2001; Luiselli Fernández 2002; Zedillo Ponce de
León 2000), for example, registration of scientific collections,
applying for special permits to collect threatened species,
and cataloging specimens in biological collections. CNMA
also complies with the legal procedures established for the
export, import and re-export of specimens, parts and derivatives established by Mexican environmental laws (Lichtinger

http://unibio.unam.mx/irekani/ http://unibio.unam.mx/irekani/

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections September 2017