This fund was established by William G. Stott in 1997 for the purpose of supporting the teaching and research activities that promote and enhance the study of mammalogy, including fieldwork, travel, scientific and popular publications, curation and collections care.

The FLMNH mammal collection is primarily a research collection but experiences a broad range of uses beyond this primary function. It is used as a teaching collection for undergraduate and graduate students, a reference collection for law enforcement, a reference collection for carnivore feeding studies, and as comparative material for students and faculty of zooarcheology and vertebrate paleontology. As part of a large university, the uses of the collection are diverse including applications in biomedical studies, wildlife dentistry, and even studies of environmental contaminants.