US - Tanzania Dissertation Enhancement: Does climate change drive population divergence in African highlands? Investigations through spatially explicit paleoclimate analyses

美国-坦桑尼亚论文强化：气候变化是否导致非洲高地的人口分化？

• 批准号: 0841641
• 负责人: John Bates
• 金额: $ 1.44万
• 依托单位: University of Chicago
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-04-15 至 2011-03-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0841641&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: US; Tanzania; Dissertation; Enhancement; Does

Under this Doctoral Dissertation Enhancement Project, Ms. Lucinda Lawson will conduct further research in Tanzania in the exploration of genetic variation within and between populations of African reed frogs and incorporates spatial distribution and landscape characteristics to understand the biological and evolutionary processes that have produced the observed patterns of variation. This project investigates the population genetics of three co-occurring montane members of the genus Hyperolius, which have an endemic diversification within these mountains. Preliminary results indicate that populations show significant structure throughout this area, with a clear pattern of Northward colonization, potentially mitigated by climate cycles. The Eastern Arc Mountains are a Conservation International Biodiversity Hot Spot, with a substantial diversity of amphibians, almost all of which are endemic to this tiny area. Lawson will sample localities predicted by bioclim models in Diva-GIS from the paraphyletic ?break zone? between haplotypes. She will also extend this work through the highlands of Malawi to sample populations thought to be outgroups to all Eastern Arc populations. During this time Lawson will be working with W. Ngalason (Tanzanian PhD student) on elevational patterns of Eastern Arc amphibians in the field and in the collections at the University of Dar es Salaam, and will conduct survey work of understudied mountains with the East African Montane Herpetology working group, of which she and W. Ngalason are members. This study will be one of the first to combine ecological and phylogenetic information for a genus of African frogs to assess the effects of historic habitat fragmentation on populations. This system is ideal for combining climatic/landscape modeling and cutting-edge molecular techniques to investigate the evolutionary processes that helped shape variation in a poorly known, megadiverse and threatened system. Such studies have important implications for conservation planning.This research program has a strong focus on working with local Tanzanian researchers and students, providing training in sampling, monitoring techniques, and population genetics. Pressure for agricultural lands, extensive logging of forests and other activities in Tanzania have drastically reduced the available montane habitat in this tropical region and developing a strong local involvement in monitoring and conservation is the key to keeping this system alive. Though the primary focus of this study is to enhance our understanding of the dynamics of a ?meta-population? in a naturally fragmented landscape, the researchers are also collecting information on communities as well as distributional, ecological, and behavioral data. Upon completion of this work, all resulting scientific papers will be submitted to the Tanzanian research council (COSTECH) and the Tanzanian Wildlife Department (TAWIRI), as dictated by collection permits and published in both US journals and African Journals to allow access to these findings for the researchers who need them most. In Illinois, Lawson has given talks on evolution, climate change and conservation, and amphibian declines to grade and high school children and groups at the Field Museum. This research program will be extended to include a student mentorship project through the Illinois Math & Science Academy and University of Chicago undergraduates will be incorporated in the analysis of genetic patterns and modeling of processes, providing a valuable research experience to potential future evolutionary and conservation biologists.

在该博士学位论文增强项目下，露辛达·劳森（Lucinda Lawson）女士将在坦桑尼亚进行进一步的研究，以探索非洲芦苇青蛙种群内部和人群之间的遗传变异，并结合了空间分布和景观特征，以了解产生观察到的生物学和进化过程变异模式。该项目调查了Hyperolius属的三个共发生的山地成员的种群遗传学，这些山内在这些山内具有流行多样性。初步结果表明，人口在整个地区都显示出重要的结构，并具有清晰的北向定殖模式，并可能通过气候周期来缓解。东部电弧山是国际生物多样性热点，具有大量的两栖动物，几乎所有两栖动物都是这个小区域的特有。 Lawson会根据diva-gis中的Bioclim模型预测的区域？在单倍型之间。她还将通过马拉维高地扩展这项工作，以样本被认为是所有东部弧种群的人群。 在此期间，Lawson将与W. Ngalason（坦桑尼亚博士生）合作，在该领域的东部电弧两栖动物的高度模式以及在达累斯萨拉姆大学的藏品中进行，并将与东非的山脉进行调查工作。她和W. Ngalason的Montane Herpetology工作组是成员。这项研究将是最早结合非洲青蛙属的生态和系统发育信息的研究之一，以评估历史栖息地破碎对人群的影响。该系统是将气候/景观建模和尖端分子技术结合起来的理想选择，以研究有助于塑造众所周知的，巨星和威胁性系统的变化的进化过程。此类研究对保护计划具有重要意义。该研究计划非常重视与当地的坦桑尼亚研究人员和学生合作，从而提供了采样，监测技术和人口遗传学的培训。农业用地的压力，森林的广泛伐木以及坦桑尼亚的其他活动大大降低了该热带地区可用的山地栖息地，并在监测和保护方面发展了强烈​​的当地参与，这是保持该系统活力的关键。尽管这项研究的主要重点是增进我们对元群体人群动力学的理解？在自然碎片的景观中，研究人员还正在收集有关社区以及分布，生态和行为数据的信息。完成这项工作后，所有由此产生的科学论文将提交给坦桑尼亚研究委员会（Costech）和坦桑尼亚野生动物部（Tawiri），如收集许可所规定的，并在美国期刊和非洲期刊上发表，以允许访问这些发现。对于最需要它们的研究人员。在伊利诺伊州，劳森（Lawson）就进化，气候变化和保护性进行了谈判，两栖动物拒绝在野外博物馆的年级和高中儿童和团体上进行谈判。该研究计划将扩展到包括伊利诺伊州数学与科学学院和芝加哥大学本科生的学生指导项目，并将纳入遗传模式和过程建模的分析中，为潜在的未来进化和保护生物学家提供有价值的研究经验。