B R E V I O R A -' \Uu iVl niseiuLm oi v^omripairafiTe Z^ooiogy HAn JNIV RECENTLY EXTINCT MAMMALS IN THE MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY Kristofer M. Helgen' and Terri L. McFadden' Mammalian extinctions in the modern era are a cause of pro-found environmental and scientific concern. Efforts to document the magnitude of mammalian extinctions within the last 500 years have increased in recent years (e.g.. Cole et ciL, 1994; MacPhee and Marx, 1997; Williams and Nowak, 1993); the most rigorous of these can be found in MacPhee and Flemming (1999). These studies have resolved much confusion regarding the enigmatic taxonomic status of many supposedly extinct mammals, and pro-duced useful discussions concerning the coiTcct dating of extinc-tion for others. The present report provides a list (Table 1) of specimens of recently extinct mammals housed in the Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ). Reporting museum specimens of recently ex-tinct taxa (such as Feiler, 1999) is especially appropriate because comparative material for these taxa is by definition limited, and in many cases, extremely rare in collections (Flannery and Schou-ten, 2001). Compilations of modern-era extinctions usually define the modern era to comprise the last 500 years. Many mammal spe-cies, especially species restricted to islands, are thought to have become extinct early within this period, and are known only by ' Mammal Department, Museum of Comparative Zoology. Harvard University, 26 Oxford Street. Cambridge, Massachusetts 02 1 38, USA.
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