Dynamically Close Pairs of Galaxies Selected in the NIR

Studies of dynamically close pairs of galaxies can serve as a powerful probe of the galaxy merger rate and its evolution. Here we present a large sample of dynamically close pairs of galaxies selected in the K-band from the UKIDSS LAS. These data span ~ 175 deg² on the sky in the 2dFGRS equatorial region (10 ^h < RA < 14^h). Combining the 2dFGRS redshifts with those from the SDSS, our K-band selected catalog is > 90% spectroscopically complete at K _AB < 16.4. In this study, we focus on quantifying the relative contributions of wet, dry, and mixed mergers to the stellar mass buildup of galaxies over the past 1-2 Gyr.