Collaborative Research: Ants of the Southwest Indian Ocean and East Africa (ASWEA): assessing phylogenetic diversity and biogeographic linkages across the Mozambique Channel

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"This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)."The islands of the Southwest Indian Ocean are renowned for exceptional biological diversity and high concentrations of endemic species. A complex process of continental fragmentation, island emergence and habitat isolation has produced a unique flora and fauna. Yet the insects of this region remain incompletely documented. Ants and other arthropods of the Comoros and Seychelles Islands and adjacent coastal portions of Mozambique and Tanzania will be collected and compared with existing inventories from Madagascar and the Mascarenes. Collaborative taxonomic tools and molecular genetics will uncover evolutionary relationships. Interactive identification keys will be developed and placed online and other arthropods will be analyzed by specialists. In addition, the project will capture detailed digital images of over 3000 species of African ants, the vast majority of ant species known from the continent. Species descriptions and detailed photographs will be published on AntWeb (www.antweb.org). Discovering and documenting the arthropods of the Southwest Indian Ocean islands and adjacent portions of east Africa will provide insight into island biogeography, evolution and speciation in this biodiversity hotspot. The project will use a novel combination of tools to provide baseline information about existing species, and identification resources will assist future efforts to monitor biodiversity. Data provided to regional collaborators will help prioritize conservation initiatives and the digitization efforts will make these ants globally accessible for study. A large pool of ant taxonomists will be fostered through student training and support, graduate student recruitment, mentorship, and ant taxonomy workshops.