Education

Ph.D.: Cornell University, 1975
B.A.: Sarah Lawrence College, 1965

Research Interests

I study the ecology and distribution of tropical mammals, and have worked chiefly in Gabon, Borneo, Peru, and Bolivia. A driving interest has been in the assemblage characteristics of high-diversity tropical mammal communities. My taxonomic research focuses on the New World rodent family Echimyidae. Current field research comprises a long term study of the mammal faunas at the savanna-forest interface in Parque Nacional Noel Kempff Mercado, Bolivia (in its twelfth year). This project includes community studies of small terrestrial mammals and bats, and GPS-telementry studies of maned wolves (Chrysocyon brachyurus). Local university students participate in the research in Bolivia. At the museum, I am currently revising "Neotropical Rainforest Mammals: A Field Guide," and working on species accounts for the rodent volume of Mammals of South America. My prior field work included 14 mammal surveys with Conservation International's Rapid Assessment Program, as well as mammal inventories for other projects. Previous ecological studies followed an array of mammals, from squirrels and treeshrews to brush-tailed porcupines and ocelots. An Adjunct Scientist of the Division of Mammals, Smithsonian Institution, I serve on the editorial boards of the journals Neotropical Fauna and Environment and Mammalia.

Recent Publications

Emmons, Louise H., Chávez, Verónica, Del Aguila, Luis Fernando, Angulo, Sixto and Muir, Matthew J. 2012. Ranging Patterns. In: Emmons, Louise H., The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park.(Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology) pp.25-36.

Castro, José M. and Emmons, Louise H. 2012. Variation in Diet and Resources. In: Emmons, Louise H., The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park.(Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology) pp.37-55.

Emmons, Louise H., Chávez, Verónica, Del Aguila, Luis Fernando, Angulo, Sixto and Muir, Matthew J. 2012. Social Interactions and Reproduction. In: Emmons, Louise H., The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park.(Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology) pp.57-75.

Deem, Sharon L., Bronson, Ellen, Angulo, Sixto, Acosta, Veronica, Murray, Suzan, Robbins, Richard G., Giger, Urs, Rothschild, Bruce and Emmons, Louise H. 2012. Morbidity and Mortality. In: Emmons, Louise H., The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park.(Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology) pp.77-89.

Emmons, Louise H. and Patton, James L. 2012. Taxonomic revision of Bolivian Juscelinomys (Rodentia, Cricetidae) with notes on morphology and ecology. Mammalia, 76(3): 285-294. doi:10.1515/mammalia-2012-0020

Bravo, Adriana, Harms, Kyle Edward and Emmons, Louise H. 2012. Keystone resource (Ficus) chemistry explains lick visitation by frugivorous bats. Journal of mammalogy, 93(4): 1099-1109. doi:10.1644/11-MAMM-A-333.1

Emmons, Louise H. 2012. The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology, 639: 1-135.

Muir, Matthew J. and Emmons, Louise H. 2012. Conservation. In: Emmons, Louise H., The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park.(Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology) pp.91-115.

Emmons, Louise H. 2012. Synthesis. In: Emmons, Louise H., The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park.(Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology) pp.117-124.

Emmons, Louise H. 2012. Introduction: Study Site and Methods. In: Emmons, Louise H., The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park.(Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology) pp.1-14.

Emmons, Louise H., Chávez, Verónica, Del Aguila, Luis Fernando and Angulo, Sixto 2012. Activity Patterns. In: Emmons, Louise H., The Maned Wolves of Noel Kempff Mercado National Park.(Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology) pp.15-24.

Solari, Sergio, Pacheco, Ví, Vivar, Elena and Emmons, Louise H. 2012. A new species of Monodelphis (Mammalia: Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae) from the montane forests of central Perú. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 125(3): 295-307. doi:10.2988/11-33.1

Queirolo, Diego, Moreira, Jose Roberto, Soler, Lucia, Emmons, Louise H., Rodrigues, Flavio H. G., Pautasso, Andres A., Luis Cartes, Jose and Salvatori, Valeria 2011. Historical and current range of the Near Threatened maned wolf Chrysocyon brachyurus in South America. Oryx, 45(2): 296-303. doi:10.1017/S0030605310000372

Bravo, Adriana, Harms, Kyle Edward and Emmons, Louise H. 2010. Puddles created by geophagous mammals are potential mineral sources for frugivorous bats (Stenodermatinae) in the Peruvian Amazon. Journal of Tropical Ecology, 26(02): 173-184.

Emmons, Louise H. 2009. Long-Term Variation in Small Mammal Abundance in Forest and Savanna of Bolivian Cerrado. Biotropica, 41(4): 493-502. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.2009.00500.x

Carleton, Michael D., Emmons, Louise H. and Musser, Guy G. 2009. A new species of the rodent genus Oecomys (Cricetidae: Sigmodontinae: Oryzomyini) from eastern Bolivia, with emended definitions of O. concolor (Wagner) and O. mamorae (Thomas). American Museum Novitates, 3661: 1-32.

Complete List of Emmon's Publications and Downloadable PDFs