Mammals of Hispaniola

Contents

Mammals of Hispaniola

Hispaniola supports a distinctive assemblage of mammals shaped by Pleistocene, Holocene and human-mediated changes, with notable endemism and introduction histories tied to colonial era events like the Columbus expedition and later Spanish colonization of the Americas. Faunal patterns reflect interactions among Caribbean biogeography, Caribbean paleontology, and conservation initiatives by institutions such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature and regional governments of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

Overview

The mammal fauna of Hispaniola includes representatives of orders Chiroptera, Rodentia, Soricomorpha (shrews historically treated under Eulipotyphla), Carnivora, and introduced Cetartiodactyla and Perissodactyla taxa, with research contributions from organizations like the American Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Royal Society, National Geographic Society, and academic centers at the University of Puerto Rico and University of the West Indies. Paleontological work tied to the Pleistocene extinctions and archaeological studies by the Caribbean Archaeological Association illuminate pre-Columbian distributions, while conservation assessments by the IUCN Red List and policy instruments influenced by the Convention on Biological Diversity guide protection.

Island endemics include the extinct and extant endemic taxa documented in monographs by researchers from the American Society of Mammalogists and museums such as the Field Museum of Natural History. Endemic bats such as species in genera treated by the American Museum of Natural History collections include members historically placed in Natalus and regional genera assessed by taxonomists publishing in journals like Journal of Mammalogy and Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. The solenodon, an emblematic insectivore, is represented by the endemic genera referenced in classic works by Glover Morrill Allen and later conservation studies coordinated with the Zoological Society of London and local NGOs in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Endemic rodents, including hutia-like taxa and extinct heteropsomyine rodents, are subjects of paleontological descriptions housed at the Smithsonian Institution and the Natural History Museum, London.

Introductions following the European colonization of the Americas include Rattus rattus, Rattus norvegicus, Mus musculus, domestic pig, cattle, domestic dog, and cat, with further introductions like goat and rabbit linked to colonial provisioning documented in archival collections at the Bibliothèque nationale de France and Archivo General de Indias. These invasive mammals interact with native species and habitats studied by field teams affiliated with the Caribbean Biodiversity Institute and impacted by policies under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

Hispaniola’s mammal distributions span habitats from montane cloud forest on Pico Duarte and the Cordillera Central (Dominican Republic) to dry forests in Gonaïves region and coastal mangroves near Samaná Bay, with records collected during expeditions funded by the National Science Foundation and reported in the Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. Karstic systems such as Los Haitises National Park and cave networks harbor troglophilic bats studied by speleological teams from institutions like the Royal Geographical Society and regional conservation NGOs. Agricultural plains near Santo Domingo and urban zones document synanthropic mammals in surveys coordinated with municipal authorities and universities including the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo.

Threat assessments employ categories from the IUCN Red List and are influenced by drivers such as habitat loss from deforestation documented in reports by the Food and Agriculture Organization and land conversion tied to policies reviewed during meetings of the Organization of American States. Threats include predation and competition from Felis catus and Canis lupus familiaris, disease transmission dynamics studied in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Pan American Health Organization, and climate impacts evaluated by panels like the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Conservation programs involve partnerships among the Zoological Society of London, local ministries of environment in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and international donors such as the World Bank.

Long-term monitoring is performed by collaborative networks including researchers from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, University of Florida, Duke University, and regional NGOs reporting in outlets such as Conservation Biology and Biodiversity and Conservation. Molecular systematics using laboratories at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and sequencing centers funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and national science councils have clarified phylogenetic relationships published in Molecular Ecology and Systematic Biology. Citizen science initiatives and capacity building involve museums like the American Museum of Natural History and university programs at the Université d'État d'Haïti.

Taxonomic checklists are maintained in compendia by the American Society of Mammalogists and databases such as those curated by the IUCN Red List and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Faunal lists include species accounts cross-referenced with historical collections from the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, the Natural History Museum, London, and the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History, and are used by legal frameworks negotiated under the Caribbean Community and environmental ministries of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

Category:Fauna of Hispaniola Category:Mammals by island