US-Pakistan Cooperative Research: Insect Diversity and Ecology at High Altitude: An Expedition to Hunza, Pakistan

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0002100SmithDescription: This award is to support a collaborative project by Dr. David Smith, Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, and Dr. Syed Azhar Hasan, Zoological Sciences Division, Pakistan Museum of Natural History, Islamabad, Pakistan. They plan an intensive, comprehensive survey of insect biodiversity and ecology of the Hunza region of the Karakoram in northern Pakistan, with botanical and geological investigation of localities/habitats. Emphasis is placed on medium-to-high elevation sites (8,000-18,000 ft) that include a scientifically unexplored traverse along the Sino-Pakistan border. The team, including seven members from the United States and the United Kingdom and seven from Pakistan, in addition to a resident of the Hunza area itself, will conduct field research for five weeks. Material collected, with additional specialist taxonomic work, will include preparation of material for molecular genetic investigation of evolutionary divergence through topographic isolation in extremely mountainous terrain.Scope: The US team leader, Dr. Smith, has done work recently on taxonomy of butterflies in northern Pakistan and is familiar with the region. This project will broaden the study to cover various other insects, and will be a major contribution to the study of Central Asian biodiversity, biogeography and ecology where specimens are scarce to nonexistent. Data on the biotic inventory in this unstudied region will provide significant contribution to 1) general biotic awareness of the region, 2) conservation and biodiversity related decision-making, and 3) broader systematic, evolutionary and biogeographic themes for which information from Karakoram is essential. This experienced multinational team will employ diverse sampling methods to enable them to document a large portion of the insect fauna of the areas visited. The inclusion of a geologist and botanist on the team will enhance the value of the insect collections by providing host plant data and detailed characterization of the sample localities. This proposal meets the INT objective of supporting collaborative research in areas of mutual interest. The Division of International Programs and the Division of Environmental Biology are supporting this project