San Diego County is home to one of the richest mammal communities in the United States, including 91 terrestrial species and 31 marine species that visit our shore. Our research team investigates our local mammal diversity through fieldwork and Museum-based research.

The Department of Mammalogy was established in 1910, and we've been working to understand, document, and protect the mammals of our county ever since. The mammal collection is now close to 26,000 specimens spanning more than 150 years, with each specimen providing an irreplaceable record of our region’s natural history. With over 110 years of mammal research under our belt, our department’s knowledge of these incredible animals is unmatched.

In addition to documenting the mammal diversity of Southern California and the Baja California peninsula, our department has developed the San Diego County Mammal Atlas, which is a critical resource that documents all 122 species of our county.

You can find our mammal team working to conserve and study these incredible animals all over our mission region, surveying in local canyons, finding species we previously thought to be extinct in Baja California, studying the flying squirrel, preparing specimens for our collection, and so much more.