COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: ARTS: Revisionary systematics of the highly threatened land snails (Achatinellidae): an integrative phylogenetic approach

栖息地的破坏、环境的变化和外来物种的入侵导致物种灭绝的速度比科学家发现和记录的速度还要快。在所有主要动物群体中，蜗牛的灭绝率最高，而这些损失大多发生在太平洋岛屿上。夏威夷是一个生物多样性的热点，拥有世界上最壮观的陆地蜗牛辐射之一，有750多种蜗牛，还有许多物种尚不为科学所知。然而，物种数量正在迅速减少，估计已经有50%或更多的物种灭绝。瓦胡岛树蜗牛（Achatinellidae）是夏威夷群岛上最多样化和最具代表性的蜗牛。对这些蜗牛的研究为进化理论和岛屿生物学的发展做出了贡献，但关于这一群体的生物学和多样性的基础知识仍然缺乏。本项目利用来自博物馆的形态学、分子和生物地理数据以及最近收集的标本来澄清这一重要的陆地蜗牛家族的分类，并为其进化和保护提供见解。准确和最新地了解这些蜗牛的身份和关系对生态系统的福利至关重要。培训将贯穿整个项目，确保下一代科学家的发展。该项目将评估高度濒危和标志性的Achatinellidae的系统分类学，提供修订和更新的分类，这将是更好地了解其多样性和保护的基础。该项目将为一名博士后研究员、一名博士生、众多大学本科生和高中生提供培训，同时实现三个主要研究目标：1)修订和更新夏威夷Achatinellidae亚科和属属专著，包括13个新种的描述；2)利用现代形态学和分子方法，提出了第一个全面的全太平洋范围的毛茛科系统发育假说；3)评估夏威夷麻花科的生物地理历史及其保护。来自STEM中代表性不足群体的高中生、本科生和研究生将学习从分子系统发育到解剖分析、博物馆策展和数字化的一系列技术，从而将科学教育与实践研究联系起来，同时培养和保持分类学方面的基本专业知识。受训人员将大量参与开发基于网络的产品，为研究人员和公众提供每个物种的生物地理、生态和分类数据，并用于开发博物馆展品以供更广泛的访问。

Habitat destruction, environmental change, and invasive species are causing the extinction of species faster than scientists can find and record them. Of all the major animal groups, snails have the highest extinction rates, and most of these losses have occurred in the Pacific islands. Hawaii, a diversity hotspot, supports one of the world's most spectacular land snail radiations with more than 750 species and numerous species still unknown to science. However, the number of species is declining rapidly, and extinction estimates are already 50% or more. The Oahu Tree Snails (Achatinellidae) are the most diverse and iconic snails in the Hawaiian Islands. Research on these snails has contributed to development of evolutionary theory and island biology, yet basics about the biology and diversity of the group is still lacking. This project uses morphological, molecular, and biogeographic data from museum and recently collected specimens to clarify the taxonomy of this important land snail family, and provide insights into their evolution and conservation. Accurate and updated understanding of the identities and relationships of these snails is critical to the welfare of the ecosystem. Training will be integrated throughout this project, ensuring the development of the next generation of scientists.The project will assess the systematics of the highly threatened and iconic Achatinellidae, providing a revised and updated classification that will be the foundation for a better understanding of their diversification and conservation. The project will provide training for one postdoctoral researcher, one Ph.D. student, and numerous university undergraduates and high schoolers while addressing the three primary research objectives: 1) produce revised and updated subfamily and generic monographs of the Hawaiian Achatinellidae, including descriptions of 13 new species; 2) develop the first comprehensive, Pacific-wide phylogenetic hypothesis for the Achatinellidae using a modern morphological and molecular approach; 3) assess the biogeographic history of the Hawaiian Achatinellidae and their conservation. High school, undergraduate and graduate students from underrepresented groups in STEM will learn a range of techniques from molecular phylogenetics to anatomical analyses and museum curation and digitization, thereby linking science education with hands-on research, while growing and sustaining essential expertise in taxonomy. Trainees will be heavily involved in development of web-based products providing biogeographic, ecological and taxonomic data for each species, accessible to researchers and the public, and used to develop museum exhibits for broader access.