For Preservation of Voucher Specimens in Environmental Studies

WHEREAS, the native mammals of North America are part of the national heritage of Canada, the United States, and Mexico, and are an important natural resource of these countries; and

WHEREAS, native mammals, especially non-game species, have come under increasing trapping pressure as the result of individual research projects, large governmentally sponsored or required programs such as the International Biological Program, and, especially in recent years, environmental impact studies being conducted by-private and/or commercial companies; and

WHEREAS, many of these programs and organizations have been remiss in failing to preserve voucher specimens adequate to document their own studies and of potential use in other studies; and

WHEREAS, the extensive sampling and inventorying of native species without the preservation of at least part of the material for scientific study is a gross misuse of the resource, a hindrance to present and future science, and an offense against the Society of Man that science serves;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the American Society of Mammalogists recommends that all appropriate Federal, State, Provincial, and local fund granting and permit regulating agencies require the preservation of voucher specimens resulting from all study conducted under their auspices which require killing of animals; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that these agencies be requested to require the preparation and deposition of voucher specimens of each species in numbers compatible with the scientific relevance of the material in Collections that meet the Minimum Standards set by the American Society of Mammalogists to insure their preservation and scientific utility.