RUI: Collaborative Research: Survey and Analysis of the Angolan Herpetofauna

安哥拉是非洲最大的国家之一，它的风景从干旱的沙漠到赤道热带雨林，应有尽有。这种景观多样性导致了许多物种的生物多样性水平很高，但记录很少，包括两栖动物和爬行动物。该项目将通过分析物种的分布、丰度、遗传学和解剖学，增加对安哥拉两栖和爬行动物多样性和进化的了解。根据这些数据，将确定、描述和正式描述未记录的物种。将检验两个主要假设：安哥拉西南部适应干旱的物种是否是在干旱气候时期迁徙的东非祖先的后代，以及仅限于安哥拉高地的物种是否是以前广泛分布的祖先的古代后代。研究人员还将测试气候因素如何影响导致疟疾的寄生虫对特定蜥蜴物种的专攻程度。该项目还将对学生进行实地和实验室方法以及数据传播和分析方面的培训。公共宣传工作将包括制作短片纪录片以及安哥拉两栖和爬行动物英语和葡萄牙语指南。对安哥拉两栖动物的调查将利用目前世界各地博物馆保存的不到8000个标本所获得的最新知识。在为期三年的时间里，将在安哥拉各地进行总共六次考察，每次考察的重点都是根据现有博物馆标本的来源或作为解决分类学问题的关键采样区而确定的样本质量较差的地区。在调查工作中获得的标本将接受生态、遗传和形态数据的收集和分析。对遗传数据的分子系统分析将识别神秘物种，并将使用有针对性的高通量测序来测试生物地理假说。形态数据收集将包括外部形态检查以及高分辨率CT扫描，以确定被研究物种的诊断内部解剖特征。将使用物种范围的生态位模拟来探索动物种群周转的模式，并确定保护优先事项。在项目过程中产生的所有生物多样性数据，包括点位置、DNA序列和CT扫描，都将提供给更广泛的科学界。研究结果将在许多出版物中传播，重点是安哥拉两栖动物的分类修订、生物地理学、形态多样性和/或寄生虫进化生态学。

Angola is among the largest countries in Africa, and its landscapes vary from arid desert to equatorial rainforest. This landscape diversity results in high, but poorly documented, levels of biodiversity in many groups, including amphibians and reptiles. This project will increase understanding of the diversity and evolution of Angola's amphibians and reptiles by analyzing species' distributions, abundances, genetics, and anatomy. Based on these data, undocumented species will be identified, characterized and formally described. Two major hypotheses will be tested: whether arid-adapted species of S.W. Angola are descended from East African ancestors that migrated during periods of dry climate, and whether species restricted to the Angolan highlands are ancient descendants of formerly widespread ancestors. Researchers will also test how climate factors affect the degree to which malaria-causing parasites specialize on particular lizard species. This project will also train students in field and laboratory methods, as well as data dissemination and analysis. Public outreach efforts will include development of short video documentaries and English- and Portuguese-language guides to Angola's amphibians and reptiles.Surveys of the Angolan herpetofauna will be informed by current knowledge gained from the less than 8,000 specimens that currently exist in museums worldwide. A total of six expeditions throughout Angola will be undertaken over a period of three years, with each focusing on a region identified as poorly sampled based on the provenance of extant museum specimens or as key sampling areas for addressing taxonomic problems. Specimens obtained in survey efforts will be subjected to collection and analysis of ecological, genetic, and morphological data. Molecular systematic analyses of the genetic data will identify cryptic species and targeted high-throughput sequencing will be used to test biogeographic hypotheses. Morphological data collection will include external morphological examination as well as high-resolution CT scanning to identify diagnostic internal anatomical features of species under study. Ecological niche modeling of species' ranges will be used to explore patterns of faunal turnover and identify conservation priorities. All biodiversity data generated in the course of the project, including point localities, DNA sequences, and CT scans, will be made available to the broader scientific community. Results of the research will be disseminated in numerous publications focused on taxonomic revision, biogeography, morphological diversity, and/or parasite evolutionary ecology of the Angolan herpetofauna.