The rich carnivore communities of the tropical forests of Central-America depend on the numerous prey species and yet the small mammal community, a potentially rich prey base, is little known. The small mammals found in this area is incredibly diverse but are vastly understudied.

Small mammal research in this area is often hindered by the frequently low success rates of labour intensive live trapping. In order to tackle this problem, Rebecca used “hair traps” as an alternative to live trapping. The traps consist of plastic tubes lined with adhesive tape to which hair samples attach as the animal passes through. Different species can then be identified from the unique hair samples that they leave behind. As part of this study, Rebecca has been collating a reference for future investigations of hair from a range of different species. Not only will this key be extremely useful for future surveys using hair tubes, but also it will assist in studies of carnivore diet, by identifying the hair remains found within carnivore scat.