Because the brain is the principal organ that produces behavior, one of the goals of neuroscience is to determine what structural specializations of the brain are involved in specific behavior. Comparisons of brain structure in diverse animals with similar or different behavior is one of the approaches of comparative neurobiology. Such studies can lead to new insights about brain form and function by revealing important differences from the patterns found in typical laboratory animals. This work will provide important detailed histological sections of brains from the Florida manatee, or sea cow. This large aquatic mammal, despite its appearance, is related to the elephants, has several unusual brain specializations, and is an endangered species. The brains for this work have come from animals mortally injured, chiefly by boating accidents, obtained by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. The brain sections will be incorporated into an existing archival collection of the highest quality of mammalian brains, now containing examples of more than 100 species representing 17 different taxonomic orders. This collection facilitates quantitative, comparative analysis of particular brain regions in animals with known behavior. These tissues will be extremely valuable not only to neuroanatomists and neurobiologists, but also to systematists and zoologists.
