The findings were published in the "Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History," in a Festschrift, a special volume in honor of Dr. Guy G. Musser, a curator at the museum who retired recently. The research was funded through a National Science Foundation grant.

Heteromys catopterius was discovered in Venezuela's Coastal Range by Dr. Robert P. Anderson, Associate Professor of Biology at The City College of New York, and Ph.D. student Eliécer E. Gutiérrez.