Education

Ph.D. (Evolutionary Biology): University of Chicago, 1972
M.A. (Geology): University of Texas at Austin, 1968
B.S. (Biology and Geology): Yale University, 1965

Research Interests

Current research interests: completion of the manuscript "The therian skull - a lexicon with emphasis on the odontocetes," formerly titled "Standardizing nomenclature in odontocete cranial osteology." This has been a long term project with Ewan Fordyce and amounts to an illustrated dictionary of osteological landmarks in the dolphin skull. Those skulls are radically different from terrestrial mammals and the terms that have been used in descriptions of them vary tremendously. We found it difficult to decide, from the published literature, if a structure was present or not because of the variability in terms used to describe it. When this work is finished it will be of great value to cetacean systematists.

Recent Publications

Nweeia, Martin T., Eichmiller, Frederick C., Hauschka, Peter V., Tyler, Ethan, Mead, James G., Potter, Charles W., Angnatsiak, David P., Richard, Pierre R., Orr, Jack R. and Black, Sandie R. 2012. Vestigial Tooth Anatomy and Tusk Nomenclature for Monodon Monoceros. The Anatomical Record: Advances in Integrative Anatomy and Evolutionary Biology, 295(6): 1006-1016. doi:10.1002/ar.22449

West, Kristi L., Mead, James G. and White, Whitney 2011. Steno bredanensis (Cetacea: Delphinidae). Mammalian Species, 43(1): 177-189. doi:10.1644/886.1

Mead, James G. and Fordyce, R. Ewan 2009. The therian skull : a lexicon with emphasis on the odontocetes. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology, 627: 1-249. doi:10.5479/si.00810282.627

Nweeia, Martin T., Nutarak, Cornelius, Eichmiller, Frederick C., Eidelman, Naomi, Giuseppetti, Anthony A., Quinn, Janet, Mead, James G., K'issuk, Kaviqanguak, Hauschka, Peter V., Tyler, Ethan M., Potter, Charles W., Orr, Jack R., Avike, Rasmus, Nielsen, Pavia and Angnatsiak, David 2009. Considerations Of Anatomy, Morphology, Evolution, and Function for Narwhal Dentition. In: Krupnik, Igor, Lang, Michael A. and Miller, Scott E., Smithsonian at the Poles: Contributions to International Polar Year Science.(IPY) pp.223-240.

Oremland, Mollie S., Allen, Bernadette M., Clapham, Phil J., Moore, Michael J., Potter, Charles W. and Mead, James G. 2009. Mandibular fractures in short-finned pilot whales, Globicephala macrorhynchus. Marine Mammal Science, 26(1): 1-16.

Complete List of Mead's Publications and Downloadable PDFs