Doctoral Dissertation Improvement: Molecular phylogeny and phylogeography of nocturnal primates (Galagoides spp) in Eastern Africa

该项目将有助于更好地了解东非矮星系内的神秘多样性，整合遗传、形态和生物声学数据。本研究将致力于1）描述目前公认的侏儒盔猴物种内部和之间的遗传关系，2）测试声音交流在保持神秘物种之间生殖隔离的重要性。该项目将产生迄今为止对galagid进化关系进行的最全面的分子评估，并将有助于阐明神秘灵长类动物多样化和物种形成的可能原因。从保护的角度来看，它将有助于了解东非夜间galagids的多样性，这对于制定有效的保护和管理计划至关重要。 这项研究还促进了多层次的国际合作。了解和描述生物多样性是生物学家的主要目标之一。然而，当物种形成并不总是伴随着明显的形态变化时，这项任务特别具有挑战性。对这些神秘物种的欣赏不仅对更好地理解生物多样性很重要，而且还可能影响我们探索物种形成模式和模式的能力。 夜行性侏儒加拉戈斯（Galagoides）是灵长类动物中形态最神秘的动物之一，其进化历史是灵长类动物学中最长期存在的问题之一。由于缺乏形态上的差异，盔形目的物种大多是根据它们的广告叫声来描述的。在galagids中，声音通信起着关键作用，声音信号用于保持与同一物种的其他成员的联系并吸引配偶。因此，物种的凝聚力很可能是由非视觉识别系统，广告呼吁已被建议在生殖隔离中发挥关键作用。然而，由于缺乏遗传数据，无法测试声音信号的具体差异是否真的有助于物种凝聚力，以及“声音物种”是否真的在遗传上不同。

This project will contribute to a better understanding of the cryptic diversity within dwarf galagos in Eastern Africa, integrating genetic, morphological and bio-acoustic data. This study will strive to 1) describe the genetic relationship within and among currently recognized dwarf galago species and, 2) test the importance of vocal communication in maintaining reproductive isolation between cryptic species. The project will yield the most comprehensive molecular assessment of galagid evolutionary relationships undertaken to date and will help elucidate likely causes of diversification and speciation among cryptic primates. From a conservation perspective, it will contribute to understand the diversity of nocturnal galagids in Eastern Africa, which is crucial for developing effective conservation and management programs. The study also promotes international collaboration at many levels.Understanding and describing biological diversity is one of the main goals for biologists. This task, however, is particularly challenging when speciation is not always accompanied by noticeable morphological change. An appreciation of such cryptic species is not only important for better understanding biological diversity, but it may also affect our ability to explore models and patterns of speciation. Nocturnal dwarf galagos (Galagoides) are among the most morphologically cryptic of all primates and their evolutionary history is one of the most longstanding problems in primatology. Given the lack of morphological differentiation, galago species have been mostly described based on their advertisement calls. Within galagids, acoustic communication plays a critical role and vocal signals are used to maintain contact with other members of the same species and to attract mates. Species cohesiveness is therefore likely to be maintained by non-visual recognition systems, and advertisement calls have been suggested to play a critical role in reproductive isolation. The lack of genetic data, however, has not allowed testing of whether specific differences in vocal signals can really contribute to species cohesion, and whether "vocal species" are actually genetically distinct.