Collaborative Research: Phylogeny, Behavior, and Silk Evolution of Web Spinners (Embloptera), a Little-Known Insect Order

网蛛（蝶翅目）是一种主要在热带森林中发现的奇特昆虫。尽管众所周知网蛛表现出一系列独特的生物现象，但它们的生物学是所有昆虫群体中研究得最少的。它们是唯一一种用前腿上的腺体吐丝的昆虫，它们在未成熟和成年时都这样做。它们表现出母性的关怀，经常群居，用丝绸建造大型的、有时是复杂的画廊，在那里它们生活和照顾自己的孩子。在整个群体中，与吐丝有关的画廊类型和行为差异很大，对丝蛋白的组成和产丝的遗传基础一无所知。虽然已知的网蛛只有大约400种，但据估计，可能有超过1500种新物种已经被收集，但尚未被正式描述，还有更多的物种在《自然》中等待发现。Webspinner分类处于一种糟糕的状态，从未使用现代的系统发育基础进行更新。三所大学的实验室之间的合作研究和培训项目将聚集一组具有专业知识的研究人员来调查蜜蜂的系统发育、行为生态学和分类。在杨百翰大学，系统发育分析将使用分子和形态数据进行，并将形成改进的自然分类的基础。在圣克拉拉大学，昆虫的生物学方面，如群体建设、母性护理和栖息地要求，将在系统发育的背景下进行研究，通过系统发育追踪这些特征。最后，在加州大学河滨分校，将通过发现几个物种的丝绸编码DNA序列来检查丝绸生产的遗传基础，并将在织网动物系统发育的背景下研究这些丝绸基因的变异。研究结果将在科学期刊上发布，并通过现代数字技术的应用，包括数字图像画廊、文学作品的数字复制、基于数字矩阵的识别密钥等。通过策展和来自实地工作的新材料，博物馆的网织者馆藏将得到加强。这个合作项目代表了有史以来第一次对织网动物的系统发育和生物学进行的全面调查。由于蠓经常出现在脆弱的生态系统中，因此更好地了解这一群体可能对保护这些栖息地具有重要意义。此外，这项工作将促进不同领域生物学家之间的多学科合作，并促进多学科研究博士后和学生的培训。这项研究将广泛涉及本科生，为他们提供坚实的科学背景，包括正确的研究方法和伦理。当项目目标实现时，一个历史上鲜为人知的昆虫群体将通过发表的结果更容易被每个人接触到，并且由于在几个学术水平上对研究人员进行广泛的跨学科培训，将对科学界产生积极的长期影响。

Webspinners (order Embioptera) are a curious group of insects foundmainly in tropical forests. Their biology is among the most poorly studiedof any insect group even though webspinners are known to exhibit a range ofunique biological phenomena. They are the only insects that spin silk fromglands in their front legs, and they do so as both immatures and adults.They exhibit maternal care and often live in groups where they use silk toconstruct large and sometimes intricate galleries in which they live andrear their young. The types of galleries and behaviors associated with silkspinning vary considerably throughout the group, and nothing is known aboutthe composition of silk proteins and the genetic basis for silk production.Although there are only about 400 species of webspinners known, estimatessuggest there may be more than 1500 new species already in collections butnot formally described and many more in Nature awaiting discovery.Webspinner classification is in a poor state never having been updated usinga modern, phylogenetic basis. A collaborative research and training projectbetween laboratories at three universities will assemble a group ofresearchers with the expertise to investigate the phylogeny, behavioralecology and classification of the Embioptera. At Brigham Young University,phylogenetic analyses will be conducted using molecular and morphologicaldata and will form the basis of an improved natural classification of thegroup. At Santa Clara University, biological aspects of the insects such ascolony construction, maternal care and habitat requirements will be examinedwithin a phylogenetic context by tracing these features through thephylogeny. Finally, at the University of California, Riverside, the geneticbasis for silk production will be examined by discovering the DNA sequencesthat code for silk in several species, and the variation in these silk geneswill be investigated within the context of webspinner phylogeny. Resultswill be disseminated in scientific journals and through applications ofmodern, digital technology including digital image galleries, digitalreproductions of literature, digital matrix-based identification keys, etc.Museum holdings of webspinners will be enhanced by curation and new materialfrom fieldwork. This collaborative project represents the first comprehensiveinvestigation of the phylogeny and biology of webspinners ever done. Sinceembiids occur in often fragile ecosystems, better knowledge of the groupwill likely have important relevance to conservation of these habitats.Also, this work will foster multidisciplinary collaboration betweenbiologists in disparate fields and facilitate the training of postdoctoralfellows and students in multidisciplinary research. The research willinvolve undergraduates extensively to give them a firm background inscience, including proper research methods and ethics. When the projectobjectives are met, a historically little-known insect group will be moreaccessible to everyone through the published results, and a positivelong-term impact on the scientific community will occur because of the broadcross-disciplinary training of researchers at several academic levels.