Collaborative Research: ARTS: Taxonomy and systematics of selected Neotropical clades of arachnids

蛛形纲动物是最多样化的动物群体之一，在所有陆地生态系统中都有许多代表。据估计，Acari（螨虫和蜱虫）的总多样性可能达到100万种，除此之外，Araneae（蜘蛛）和Opiliones（收割者或长腿爸爸）是最多样化的蛛形纲。该项目的主要目标是对两个蛛形目（蛛形目[蜘蛛]和蛛形目[长腿爸爸]）中选定的新热带类群的几个谱系进行分类修订（专著）。我们在本提案中所针对的类群主要是凋落叶栖生物（拟虫类除外），样本和研究严重不足，缺乏现代修订工作，包括许多物种水平及以上未描述的分类群，因此为现代专著和系统分类学提供了很好的研究和培训机会。我们研究小组的大部分重叠的新热带分布使我们能够在联合野外考察中有效地收集这些蛛形纲动物。其中一些研究分类群也提出了类似的生物地理和进化问题，这些问题可以用共同的方法和专业知识来解决。为了实现我们的研究和培训目标，我们组建了一支科学家团队，他们在系统学和机械学方面有着不同的背景，并且在合作研究方面有着成功的历史。结合研究努力来解决这些分类学问题，为我们以最广泛的方式培养博士生的多序数和多学科方法提供了经验基础。除了联合实地考察外，实验室轮转和参与项目的多名研究人员之间的合作也有助于这种协同作用。研究成果将在“生命百科全书”和“生命之树”等高影响力的门户网站上发布。还将制作在线互动识别工具。

Arachnids comprise one of the most diverse groups of animals, with numerous representatives in all terrestrial ecosystems. Aside from Acari (mites and ticks), whose total estimated diversity might reach up to one million species, the orders Araneae (spiders) and Opiliones (harvestmen or daddy longlegs) are the most diverse arachnid lineages. The main goal of this project is to carry out taxonomic revisions (monographs) of several lineages across selected Neotropical groups in two arachnid orders (Araneae [spiders] and Opiliones [daddy long legs]). The groups that we have targeted in this proposal are mainly leaf litter inhabitants (except for mimetids), grossly undersampled and understudied, that lack modern revisionary work and include many undescribed taxa at the species level and above, and thus provide excellent research and training opportunities in modern monography and systematics. The largely overlapping Neotropical distribution of our study groups allows us to effectively collect these arachnids in joint field expeditions. Some of these study taxa also pose similar biogeographic and evolutionary questions that can be addressed with common methodology and expertise. To carry out our research and training goals we have assembled a team of scientists with diverse backgrounds in systematics and arachnology and a demonstrated history of successful collaborative research efforts. Combining research efforts to tackle these taxonomic problems provides the empirical basis for our multi-ordinal and multidisciplinary approach for training doctoral students in the broadest possible way. Lab rotations and collaboration among the multiple investigators participating in the projects, in addition to the joint field expeditions, also contribute to this synergism. Research results will be disseminated in high impact portals such as Encyclopedia of Life and Tree of Life. Online interactive identification tools will also be produced.